The equity benchmark indices declined nearly 1% on Friday (March 15) after a day's breather amid weak global market trends and foreign fund outflows. The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 453.85 points or 0.62% to settle at 72,643.43 after a weak beginning.
During the day, the benchmark tanked 612.46 points or 0.83% to 72,484.82. The NSE Nifty dropped 123.30 points or 0.56% to 22,023.35. Similarly, the Nifty Bank witnessed a slip of 196 points to reach 46,594, and the Midcap Index saw a decline of 216 points, settling at 46,886.
From the Sensex basket, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, NTPC, HCL Technologies, Larsen & Toubro, Infosys, Tech Mahindra and State Bank of India were the major laggards. Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Consultancy Services and IndusInd Bank were among the gainers.
In a related development, oil market companies faced substantial cuts of up to 10% following a fuel price reduction. Meanwhile, the government's unveiling of a new electric vehicle (EV) policy aimed at attracting global corporations led to mixed reactions, with Tata Motors and M&M experiencing setbacks.
The ongoing trend of selling pressure in PSU stocks persisted, with the Nifty PSU Index witnessing a decline of 9% for the week. Notably, with the exception of three stocks, all PSU stocks concluded lower, with oil marketing companies (OMCs) emerging as the top losers.
Additionally, pressure continued to mount on tyre stocks, with Apollo Tyres witnessing a decline of more than 6%. Similarly, Biocon faced challenges despite announcing a biologics agreement with Eris, leading to a 6% decline in its stock value.
Amidst the market turbulence, there were pockets of resilience, with Hind Copper rising more than 3% on the back of higher global prices. Similarly, L&T Technology Services witnessed a gain of 3% following an ₹800 crore order win from the Maharashtra government.
Moreover, Reliance Infrastructure surged by 11% as Reliance Power signed a settlement agreement. Overall, the market breadth favoured declines, with the advance-decline ratio standing at 4:5.
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong settled lower, while Shanghai ended in the green. European markets were trading with marginal gains. The US markets ended in negative territory on Thursday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 1,356.29 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge slipped by 0.51% while the smallcap index went up by 0.25%. Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.68% to $84.84 a barrel.
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