Sensex falls 180 points, Nifty settles below 19,400; Jio Financial tanks 5%; Kopran jumps 20%

Domestic equity markets took a U-turn on Thursday and settled lower, bucking positive global cues. Benchmark indices erased early gains amid weekly expiry of the derivative contracts as selling pressure in heavyweights weighed on investor sentiment. Traders will await US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell's speech, due on Friday, for cues on inflation.

For the day, the 30-share pack BSE Sensex dropped 180.96 points, or 0.28 per cent, to settle at 65,252.34, while NSE's Nifty shed 57.30 points, or 0.29 per cent, to end the day at 19,386.70. Broader markets outperformed the headline indices as BSE midcap and smallcap indices settled in green. Fear gauge India VIX dropped slightly to 11.70-levels.

While markets were volatile in early trades, it turned rangebound with a negative bias thereafter and finally ended on a subdued note as investors are not taking any chances by betting big in an uncertain global economic environment. Investors will continue to take cues from global markets for direction as nobody wants to get caught off guard in case of any negative developments, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Research (Retail), Kotak Securities.

"Technically, the Nifty has formed a bearish candle, which is largely negative. For bulls, 19,470 would act as an immediate resistance zone, and if the index is trading below the same, the weak sentiment is likely to continue and could retest the level of 19,325-19,300. On the flip side, post 19500 breakout the market could rally till 19,600-19,625," he added.

On a sectoral front, the Nifty healthcare index and PSU Bank indices dropped about a per cent each, while the Nifty pharma, oil & gas and consumer durable indices also posted significant cuts. On the contrary, the Nifty IT index gained about a per cent each, while FMCG, media and realty indices posted decent gains.

In the Nifty50 pack, Jio Finance Services dropped 5 per cent, hitting lower circuit for fourth session in a row. Reliance Industries and Divis Laboratories dropped more than 2, while Power Grid, ONGC, Hindalco, JSW Steel, Grasim Industries, Larsen & Toubro and Bajaj Auto shed a per cent each.

Among the gainers, Bharat Petroleum and Asian Paints gained about 2 per cent, while IndusInd Bank, Infosys and Britannia Industries added about a per cent each. Adani Entertainment, Ultratech Cement, Axis Bank and Bharti Airtel were among the other key gainers for the day.

The US market exhibited a positive trend as declining US PMI ignited hopes of a prolonged rate pause, calming US bond yields. Optimism in the domestic market was more visible in the IT sector, though sentiments were reversed in other major sectors, likely influenced by the prevailing global uncertainties, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

"Despite this, mid- and small-cap stocks demonstrated resilience, and the decline in bond yields facilitated a resurgence in foreign investor buying momentum," he said.

A total of 3,780 shares were traded on BSE on Thursday, of which 1,830 settled with cuts. 1,785 stocks ended the session with cuts while 165 shares remained unchanged. A total of 265 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 192 shares tested the lower circuit levels for the day.

In the broader markets, Kopran gained more than 20 per cent, while Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar surged more than 14 per cent. Prakash Industries rallied about 12 per cent, while Filatex India and Mukand rose about 11 per cent. Hari Om Pipe, Indiabulls Real Estate and Titagarh Wagons soared more than 10 per cent, each.

On the other hand, DB Corp dropped more than 6 per cent, while Rainbow Children Medicare, TARC, Shaily Engineering, Alok Textile, Hindustan Oil Exploration and Dredging Corporation of India tumbled 5 per cent. Campus Activewear, Ami Organics and Tanla Platforms shed 4 per cent, each, for the day.

Also read: Nifty, Sensex end in red; Asian Paints, IndusInd Bank top gainers; Jio Financial, Grasim top losers; Coforge, Paytm, other stocks that buzzed in trade on August 24, 2023

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