Benchmark stock market indices lost momentum amid
weakness in information technology (IT) and financial services stocks on Monday.
The S&P BSE Sensex closed 325.58 points lower at
64,933.87, while the NSE Nifty 50 fell 82 points to settle at 19,443.55.
Broader market indices also took a sharp tumble after gaining sharply during
yesterday’s Muhurat Trading session.
Nifty Metal and Nifty PSU Bank were the only two
gainers among sectoral indices, with notable declines in heavyweights such as
Nifty Bank, Nifty Financial Services and Nifty IT.
The top five gainers on the Nifty 50 were Coal India,
Eicher Motors, Hindalco, M&M and BPCL. On the other hand, the top five
losers were SBI Life, Bajaj Finance, Grasim, Infosys and Nestle.
Coal India shares rose over 5 per cent today to hit a
52-week high after brokerages raised the target price for its stock, citing
strong Q2FY24 results.
Besides Infosys, several IT stocks ended lower during
the trading session, including Tech Mahindra and TCS. Heavyweight stocks such
as HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries Limited also ended the trading session in
the red.
According to analysts, today’s market downturn was a
reaction to the strong rally that markets experienced during yesterday’s
hour-long special trading session. They also said that the fundamentals of the
domestic market remain strong and will witness gains in the long run.
Agencies
