Indian equity benchmarks fell on Thursday to retreat from two-week highs registered in the previous session, as the bulls halted a winning run that began on the eve of the Union Budget for FY23. Losses in financial, IT and oil & gas stocks pulled the headline indices lower, though gains in auto stocks lent some support.
The 30-scrip index ended 770.3 points or 1.3 percent lower at 58,788 and the broader Nifty50 benchmark settled at 17,560.2, down 219.8 points or 1.2 percent from its previous close. Both indices had risen more than four percent in the past three sessions.
Weakness in the market was broad-based. The Nifty Midcap 100 index closed one percent lower. Its smallcap counterpart declined 0.3 percent.
HDFC, ONGC, SBI Life, Grasim, Infosys, Larsen & Toubro and Bajaj Finserv were the worst hit among the 43 laggards in the Nifty50 pack. On the other hand, Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, Divi's, Maruti Suzuki and ITC were among the gainers.
"Global cues turned in favour of the bears with major sectors succumbing to selling... US futures were under pressure following Meta's (Facebook) weak earnings numbers. European markets fretted about monetary policy tightening ahead of the central bank policy announcement," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
Investors awaited more earnings reports from India Inc as well as the outcome of a bi-monthly policy review by the RBI due next week for cues.
ITC shares ended 1.1 percent higher at Rs 234.3 apiece on BSE, as investors awaited the cigarettes-to-hotels conglomerate's Q3 results.
Titan Company shares rose half a percent to Rs 2,475.5 at the close, after the watch and jewellery maker posted a strong set of earnings for the October-December period.
GAIL shares rose 0.8 percent after the state-run gas utility's quarterly numbers exceeded Street estimates by a wide margin.
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Around 350 stocks in the BSE 500 index -- the broadest gauge on the bourse -- finished the day in the red.
From the midcap and smallcap segments, M&M Financial, MCX, Saregama, Spandana and Welspun were among the top losers, falling around 5-8 percent. On the other hand, Blue Star, Amber, Balaji Amines, Mas Financial and Hathway were the top gainers, rising between seven percent and 20 percent.
Global markets
European share markets began Thursday's session in the red as focus shifted to the European Central Bank’s policy meeting amid concerns about inflation in the euro zone. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 0.7 percent at the last count.
S&P 500 futures were up 0.9 percent, suggesting a positive opening ahead on Wall Street.
Technical view
The Nifty should hold 17,350 on Friday for any recovery, else profit taking may continue, said Ajit Mishra, VP-Research at Religare Broking. "Participants should maintain their focus more on risk management and add quality stocks on dips," he said.
