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Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty fell over 1% on Friday due to heavy selling in IT, financial and oil stocks in line with weak trends in global markets.
The 30-share Sensex ended 671.15 points, or 1.12%, lower at 59,135.13, as 21 of its shares declined. The index opened with a loss and slipped further to touch the day’s low of 58,884.98.
The broader Nifty closed 176.70 points, or 1%, lower at 17,412.90, with 35 stocks ending in the red. The index moved in a range of 17,324.35 to 17,451.50 during the session.
Among Sensex stocks, HDFC Bank fell the most by 2.58%, followed by SBI (2.12%), HDFC (2.09%), and IndusInd Bank (2.02%).
Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, M&M, L&T, Reliance, Infosys and TCS were among the major losers.
In contrast, Tata Motors, Maruti, NTPC, Sun Pharma, Power Grid and Titan were among the gainers.
Analysts said heavy selling in financial, banking, IT and capital goods stocks from weak Asian markets and overnight losses in the US market dragged the benchmark indices lower.
“The sell-off in US markets was triggered by a 60 per cent drop in SVB Financials – a bank that mainly funds startups. This dented sentiment and banking stocks took note of concerns that rising interest rates could lead to loan repayment defaults.” may trigger a rally,” said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
Global stock markets declined on Friday ahead of US job market data amid concerns of a possible interest rate hike.
Markets in London, Shanghai, Frankfurt and Tokyo declined. Oil prices were low.
The global market’s cautious attitude towards the possibility of a sharp rate hike was made worse by further negative signals from the US market. Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services, said the sell-off intensified as the US unemployment and non-farm payrolls data awaited the release.
In the US, the S&P 500 fell 1.8%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 1.7% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.1% on Thursday as investors worried about the prospect of more aggressive action by the Federal Reserve to fight inflation with higher interest rates. I am concerned.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) emerged as net sellers in the capital market on Thursday as they sold shares worth ₹561.78 crore, according to exchange data.