Indian benchmark indices reversed early gains to trade lower in Monday’s afternoon session, with broader markets witnessing increased selling pressure despite positive opening cues.
The BSE Sensex fell 197.70 points or 0.24 per cent to 81,027.05, while the Nifty50 declined 109.60 points or 0.44 per cent to 24,744.45 at 12:30 PM IST. The broader market weakness was more pronounced in the Nifty Next 50, which dropped 768.05 points or 1.03 per cent to 73,520.05.
Market breadth remained significantly negative with 2,654 stocks declining versus 1,250 advances on the BSE. The exchange reported 231 stocks hitting 52-week highs, while 53 touched their 52-week lows.
HDFC Bank emerged as the top gainer, rising 3.30 per cent after reporting a 5 per cent increase in quarterly profits. Other notable gainers included Bajaj Auto gaining 3.15 per cent, Asian Paints up 1.12 per cent, Tech Mahindra adding 0.76 per cent, and Eicher Motors advancing 0.74 per cent.
Tata Consumer Products led the losers’ pack, plunging 7.15 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank dropping 5.71 per cent. BPCL declined 3.12 per cent, while IndusInd Bank and Bajaj Finserv fell 3.07 per cent and 2.51 per cent respectively.
Sectoral performance remained mixed, with Nifty Bank dropping 0.25 per cent to 51,964.10, while Nifty Financial Services managed to stay positive with a marginal gain of 0.07 per cent at 23,955.40. The Nifty Midcap Select index declined 0.55 per cent to 12,962.15.
Market volatility was evident in the number of stocks hitting circuit limits, with 294 stocks touching upper circuits and 298 hitting lower circuits during the session.
The market reversal comes amid continuing FII selling, which reached $8.4 billion in October, despite strong Q2 results from several index heavyweights and gold prices hitting record highs above $2,700 per ounce.