The Indian stock market displayed a mixed trade in the Monday trading session as benchmark indices, Nifty and Sensex ended with gains, while few sectoral indices remained weak. Buying occured in Bank and FMCG stocks leading Nifty to give higher closing.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty 50 index 0.34 per cent higher at 24,936, while the S&P Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex also settled 375 points or 0.46 per cent higher at 81,559 levels on the closing bell.
Nifty Moves
In the Nifty 50 index, merely 27 stocks advanced in the positive territory, while 23 stocks ended in the red territory.
Among the winners Hindustan Unilever led with nearly 3 per cent gain to top the index followed by more than 2 per cent gain in Shriram Finance, ICICI Bank and ITC.
Among the laggards, ONGC continued to plunge for the sixth session, while Tech Mahindra lost 2.7 per cent. Hindalco, NTPC, BPCL, Tata Steel, Wipro and Tata Motors lost more than 1 per cent.
Analyst Note
“Markets rebounded after four-sessions losses due to buying in banking stocks, however undertone remained cautious as most of the sectoral stocks ended in red amid uncertainty over US Fed rate cut later this month. Investors will be closely watching US inflation data to be announced later this week, which could provide more clarity on whether the Fed would undertake its first rate cut in the backdrop of slowing economy and weak jobs data,” said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities.
"Despite a negative opening amidst weak global cues, the domestic market exhibited some recovery from last week’s steep fall. The market is currently attempting to gain stability between potential rate cuts and recession fears in the US. The current trend in the US job data suggests that the anticipated 25 bps rate cut may not be sufficient. Moreover, the upcoming data on US inflation and jobless claims will be decisive in assessing the market trend,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
Sectoral Movement
In terms of sectoral performance, Nifty Bank ended more than 1 per cent higher and Financial Services moved 0.82 per cent lower, while PSU Banks ended with 0.2 per cent loss.
Auto and Pharma ended with marginal losses, while Metal and IT shredded 0.68 per cent and 0.73 per cent. Realty also ended 0.24 per cent lower, however FMCG surged 2 per cent.
The more domestically focussed indices, Mid-cap shredded 0.26 per cent, whereas Small-cap dipped nearly 1 per cent.