Indian benchmark indices made a U-turn after five back-to-back weekly gains, as losses in IT and financial stocks pulled the market away from record highs. The Sensex returned below the 58,800 mark days after climbing atop Mount 60,000 for the first time ever. For the IT gauge, it was the worst week in eight months.
The 30-scrip index tumbled 1,282.9 points or 2.1 percent for the week, and the Nifty50 benchmark dropped 321.2 points or 1.8 percent. Broader indices outperformed the headline indices. For the week, the midcap index rose 0.8 percent and its smallcap counterpart 0.6 percent.
It was a week that began with positive domestic cues, with infrastructure growth making it to double digits and a private survey showing a pickup in manufacturing.
Rising crude oil prices and US bond yields sent jitters across global markets amid concerns over the health of the Chinese economy. Investors also tracked updates from the US on its debt ceiling crisis, as the US Congress faced deadlines to fund the government.
Back home, auto manufacturers started reporting monthly sales figures as investors pinned hopes on the upcoming festive season. The latest readings come at a time when the sector is struggling against a global shortage of semiconductors.
Among sectors, the Nifty IT index fell 6.3 percent for the week -- the worst among the sectors tracked by NSE. The financial services and private banking gauges fell around 2.5 percent each. On the other hand, the Nifty PSU Bank index clocked a weekly gain of 6.1 percent, followed by the oil & gas barometer's 3.6 percent rise.
IT and banking witnessed consolidation ahead of their Q2 results, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
TCS, the country's largest IT company, will kick off the earnings season on Friday, October 8.
Among blue-chip stocks, Coal India, NTPC, Power Grid, Indian Oil and ONGC were the top gainers.
Nifty gainers
| Stock | Weekly change (%) |
| Coal India | 13.6 |
| NTPC | 12.6 |
| Power Grid | 8.9 |
| Indian Oil | 8.7 |
| ONGC | 7.5 |
| Sun Pharma | 7.3 |
| M&M | 6.2 |
| Tata Motors | 4.8 |
| BPCL | 4.4 |
| Dr Reddy's | 3.5 |
On the other hand, Tech Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finserv and HCL Tech were the worst hit among the 28 laggards in the 50-scrip index.
Nifty losers
| Stock | Weekly change (%) |
| Tech Mahindra | -9.5 |
| Bharti Airtel | -8.6 |
| Asian Paints | -7.9 |
| Bajaj Finserv | -7.3 |
| HCL Tech | -6.2 |
| Wipro | -6 |
| Infosys | -5.6 |
| Eicher Motors | -5.4 |
| Divi's Labs | -5.4 |
| IndusInd Bank | -5.1 |
In the Nifty Midcap 100 and Smallcap 100 packs, Tata Power, BHEL, Trident and IRB Infra -- rising 16.6-21.5 percent -- were among the top gainers. Mphasis, Mindtree, CAMS and Bajaj Electricals -- falling between 9.1 percent and 11.5 percent -- were among the losers.
Around 115 stocks saw weekly losses in the BSE 500 universe -- the broadest gauge on the bourse.
The road ahead
Analysts await the outcome of the RBI's scheduled policy review due next week for cues. A private survey on the country's key services sector will also be tracked closely.
"The central bank is expected to maintain its accommodative stance to ensure adequate liquidity in the system and to support economic activity," said Nair.
(Edited by : Yashi Gupta)
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