Lagatar24 Desk
Mumbai, Nov.17: Losses in Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, HDFC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank, Tata Consultancy Services, and Bharti Airtel pulled down Indian market benchmarks for the second straight session on Wednesday.
The Sensex plummeted 378 points, and the Nifty 50 index plunged below 17,900, a key psychological milestone. Benchmarks traded in a narrow band with a negative bias for the majority of the day, but they extended losses in afternoon trading as selling pressure in banking stocks increased.
The Sensex plummeted 314 points to 60,008, while the Nifty 50 index dropped 101 points to 17,899.
For Wednesday, the dollar rose as solid U.S. retail sales data fueled predictions on earlier Federal Reserve rate hikes, while European stocks gained a little amount of ground after Asian markets shook due to concerns about COVID-19.
The statistics reinforced expectations of a rate hike as early as mid-2022, given the strong level of inflation. The statistics may also push the Fed to speed the tapering of its asset buying programme, according to investors.
Back home, nine of the National Stock Exchange’s 15 sector indices finished lower, headed by the Nifty Realty index, which fell 1.6 percent.
The Nifty Oil & Gas, Private Bank, Consumer Durables, Pharma, Financial Services, and Bank indices all dropped by 0.7-1.5 percent.
Auto stocks, on the other hand, saw buying interest for the second straight day as news surfaced that fears about a chip shortage will be rectified soon. Buying activity was also seen in a few media and healthcare stocks.
Mid-cap equities were hit by selling pressure, while small-cap stocks saw some buying interest. On the National Stock Exchange, the 100 midcap index fell 0.7 percent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 index rose 0.13 percent.
UPL was the highest Nifty loser, falling 3.2 percent to 755. Cipla, Britannia Industries, Axis Bank, Indian Oil, Coal India, Divi’s Labs, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Eicher Motors, Grasim Industries, Adani Ports, and Shree Cements all saw their stocks fall between 1.6 and 2.2 percent.
Asian Paints, Maruti Suzuki, SBI Life, Tata Motors, NTPC, ITC, Power Grid, IndusInd Bank, and Tech Mahindra, on the other hand, gained between 1.2 and 2.4%.
On the BSE, the overall market breadth was negative, with 1,855 shares ending down and 1,494 ending higher.
