Sensex extends losses to fourth day in a row; IT, financial services stocks drop

NEW DELHI: Domestic benchmark indices remained under pressure throughout the day on Thursday and ended in the red for the fourth session in a row dragged by selling pressure witnessed in IT and financial services stocks.

Investors remained cautious about the increasing Covid-19 cases, especially in Asia. Meanwhile, in India, despite the easing of restrictions, the manufacturing PMI reading contracted to 48.1 in June from 50.8 in the previous month.

The 30-share pack Sensex declined 164.11 points or 0.31 per cent to close at 52,318.60. Its broader peer NSE Nifty dropped 41.50 points or 0.26 per cent to settle at 15,680.

“However, the diminishing rate of domestic infections and the progress in vaccinations provided some comfort to the market. Positive auto sales numbers for June helped the sector trade in positive territory," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Market at a glance:

• Sequent Scientific plunges 9% after co reports March quarter earnings
• Vodafone Idea plummets 9% as auditor raises doubts over company's future
• Jain Irrigation hits 10% upper circuit as net loss narrows in Q4
• Bajaj Auto gains 2% after June sales grow 24%
• Volatility index India VIX eases 1.6%, slides below 13 mark

Among the blue-chip names, Dr Reddy’s Labs was the top gainer, rising 2.75 per cent. Hindalco, Bajaj Auto, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, ONGC, , Maruti Suzuki and NTPC were other gainers.

Bajaj Finserv was the top loser in the Nifty pack, falling 2.23 per cent. Britannia, Infosys, Wipro, Shree Cement, BPCL, UltraTech Cement, IndusInd Bank, Tech Mahindra and Power Grid were other scrips that ended in the red.

Broader market indices ended on a mixed note and outperformed their headline peers. Nifty Smallcap added 0.66 per cent and Nifty Midcap declined 0.26 per cent. Nifty 500, the broadest index on NSE, ended down 0.14 per cent.

KEI Industries, Graphite India, Avanti Feeds, JSW Energy, Oil India and Deepak Nitrite were top gainers from midcap and smallcap indices, climbing in the range of 4-10 per cent.

Vodafone Idea, Total Gas, Power Finance Corporation, Sequent Scientific, IRB Infra Developers and Rail Vikas Nigam were major losers from the broader market space, falling in the range of 2-10 per cent.

The sectoral matrix on NSE was mixed. Nifty Pharma was the top gainer among NSE's sectoral gauges. Nifty Auto followed closely. Nifty IT fell the most, ending the day down 0.57 per cent, followed by Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Realty.

Market breadth was in favour of gainers as 1,639 stocks ended in the green while 1,570 counters settled with cuts. As many as 403 securities hit 52-week highs, mostly from the smallcap space. Meanwhile, 20 names hit 52-week lows, mostly from the microcap space. About 435 stocks hit upper circuit limits and 345 lower circuit limits.