Sensex, Nifty fall for two days as banks, auto stocks shine

Benchmark BSE Sensex and Nifty closed their two-day losing streak on August 23 with gains of nearly half a per cent, following gains in banking, metal and auto stocks.

The 30-share BSE Sensex closed at 59,031.30, up 257.43 points or 0.44%. During the day it touched a high of 59,199.11 and a low of 58,172.48.

The broader NSE Nifty rose 86.80 points, or 0.50%, to 17,577.50.

Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv, Titan, Tata Steel, State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Sun Pharma and IndusInd Bank led the Sensex pack.

On the other hand, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Hindustan Unilever, Tech Mahindra, Wipro and HDFC Bank were the major laggards.

In Asia, markets in Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong closed lower. European stock markets were trading with a mixed trend during the mid-session deals. Wall Street closed down sharply on Monday.

“Markets are showing fear of uncertainty as they move with higher volatility due to weak cues from global peers, while a strong domestic economy is providing some comfort. Global markets were under pressure due to fears, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, “before the Jackson Hole meeting.”

On the domestic front, gains in banks, auto and metals were countered by selling in IT stocks as majors are reducing variable pay due to margin pressure, Nair said.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.43% higher at $97.85 a barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded shares worth Rs 453.77 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.