Sensex snaps 2-day winning run, ends volatile session 14 pts lower

NEW DELHI: Domestic equity benchmarks ended flat on Tuesday as profit booking in banking and financial stocks kept Dalal Street under pressure. Global cues were positive while hopes on a fiscal stimulus package helped boost the sentiments.

Both Sensex and Nifty witnessed a positive opening following reports of the next set of stimulus measures and a decline in Covid-19 cases, but ended flat amid a selling spree in banking stocks that took away the benchmark indices' intraday gains.

The 30-share pack declined 14.37 points or 0.03 per cent to close at 50,637.53, having traded in a range of 487.01 points during the session. Its broader peer NSE Nifty 50 advanced 10.75 points or 0.07 per cent to settle at 15,208.45.

“As per reports, the central government is preparing the next set of support measures to minimise the economic impact of the second wave of the pandemic, especially on the worst hit sectors. Barring financials, which witnessed profit booking, all major sectors traded in the green," said Vinod Nair, Head Of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Market at a glance:

• Panacea Biotec soars 5% as Sputnik V production kicks off
• Bal Pharma hits upper circuit as co launches affordable Favipiravir
• Amara Raja Batteries tanks 6% as Clarios offloads stake
• Media stocks continue outperformance; Dish TV leaps 20%
• Volatility barometer India VIX drops 1.5%

Among the blue-chip names, was the top gainer, rising 3.51 per cent. Titan, JSW Steel, Eicher Motors, Britannia, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Consumer Products and TCS were other gainers.

was the top loser in the Nifty pack, falling 1.92 per cent. HDFC Life Insurance, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries, Coal India, , HDFC and Adani Ports were among other stocks that ended in the red.

Broader market indices ended lower, underperforming their headline peers. Nifty Smallcap dropped 0.08 per cent and Nifty Midcap fell 0.16 per cent. Nifty 500, the broadest index on NSE, ended flat.

Container Corporation, Max Financial Services, Balkrishna Industries, Wockhardt Pharma, Chambal Fertilisers and IDFC were top gainers from midcap and smallcap indices, climbing in the range of 3-7 per cent.

Amber Enterprises, Century Ply, India Cements, Union Bank of India, Amara Raja Batteries and Bharat Electronics were major losers from the broader market space, falling in the range of 4-9 per cent.

The sectoral matrix on NSE was mixed. Nifty Media was the biggest gainer, rising 3.17 per cent. It was followed by Nifty IT, which rose about 1 per cent. Nifty PSU Bank was the biggest loser, down 1.34 per cent. Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Financial Service also ended in the red.

Market breadth was in favour of bulls as 1,786 stocks ended in the green while 1,342 scrips settled with cuts. As many as 357 securities hit 52-week highs, mostly from the smallcap space. Meanwhile, 29 counters hit 52-week lows, mostly from the microcap space. About 460 stocks hit upper circuit limits and 207 lower circuit limits.

European markets were trading lower at the last count. London-based FTSE was up 0.04 per cent while Paris and Frankfurt advanced 0.08 per cent and 0.74 per cent, respectively. In Asia, all markets ended with gains, led by a 2.4 per cent rise in China.