MARKET WRAP: Sensex ends 137 pts higher, Nifty above 11,700; ITC slides 5%

A disappointing Budget for the year 2020-21, coupled with worries over deadly coronavirus kept market participants cautious for the most part of the session on Monday. However, buying in select counters helped benchmark indices settle in the positive territory. 

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 137 points or 0.34 per cent to end at 39,872 with Asian Paints (up over 6 per cent) being the top gainer and ITC (down 5 per cent) the biggest loser. HUL, Asian Paints, ICICI Bank, and IndusInd Bank contributed the most to the index's gains while ITC, TCS, and Infosys were the major drags.

ITC was the stock of the day as the counter hit its fresh 52-week low after the government proposed to increase the National Calamity Contingency Duty (NCCD) on cigarettes, hookah, chewing tobacco, snuff and tobacco extracts and essence. The stock settled at Rs 207 apiece on the BSE, down nearly 5.5 per cent. READ MORE 

On the NSE, the broader Nifty added 46 points or 0.39 per cent to close the session at 11,708. 

Sectorally, media, realty and metal stocks advanced the most while PSU banks took the biggest knock. The Nifty PSU Bank index lost nearly 2.5 per cent to end at 2,221.80 levels. 

In the broader market, the Nifty Midcap 100 index added 189 points or 1 per cent to end at 17,709 levels while the Nifty SmallCap index ended flat at 6,049-mark, down over 8 points or 0.14 per cent.