The benchmark indices were trading in the red Wednesday afternoon on profit-taking, dragged by metal, auto and financials.

After opening down marginally, the domestic market was little changed despite weak global markets that were reflecting mounting inflation worries. However, domestic investors remain optimistic owing to a decline in Covid-19 cases in the country.

Profit-taking may keep market under leash

At 1 pm, BSE Sensex was at 50,127.66, down 65.67 points or 0.13 per cent. It hit an intra-day high of 50,279.01 and a low of 50,015.57. Nifty 50 was at 15,087.45, down 20.65 points or 0.14 per cent. It hit an intra-day high of 15,133.40 and a low of 15,049.65.

Benchmark indices flat, Sensex slips 45 points to 50,148

Gaurav Garg, Head Of Research, CapitalVia Global Research Ltd, said, “Sentiments in the domestic markets remain stable as the number of Covid-19 cases declines and a few reports suggest that the Indian market will grow faster as the vaccination process reaches its perceived levels.”

Cipla, Nestle India, UPL, Sun Pharma and Shree Cements were the top gainers on the Nifty 50 while Tata Motors, Bajaj Finserv, ONGC, Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Steel were the top laggards.

Pharma stocks recover, metals lose shine

On the sectoral front, pharma stocks rebounded from previous sessions’ losses, while metal, auto and financials witnessed profit-booking. Nifty Pharma was up 0.92 per cent.

IT and realty stocks also gained. Nifty IT was up 0.56 per cent while Nifty Realty was up 2.15 per cent.

Meanwhile Nifty Metal was down 0.77 per cent while Nifty Auto was down 0.55 per cent. Nifty Bank and Nifty Financial Services were down 0.54 per cent and 0.66 per cent, respectively.

Nifty PSU Bank managed to retain gains and was up 0.77 per cent.

Broader indices

Broader indices outperformed the benchmarks and managed to remain in the green. Nifty Midcap 50 was up 0.25 per cent while Nifty Smallcap 50 was up 0.60 per cent. The S&P BSE Midcap was up 0.63 per cent while the S&P BSE Smallcap was up 0.68 per cent.

Notably, the volatility index rose 0.64 per cent to 19.37.