A vendor walks past by a poster of bear and bull in south Mumbai. File
| Photo Credit: The HIndu
Benchmark stock indices fell more than 1% to their eight-month lows due to growth concerns in the U.S., said analysts.
The BSE Sensex fell 856 points, or 1.14%, to 74,454 points led by IT stocks, while Nifty-50 declined 243 points, or 1.06%, to 22,553.
Top losers in the Sensex pack were HCL Tech (3.32%,) Zomato (3.32%), TCS (2.93%), Infosys (2.81%), Bharti Airtel (2.29%) and Tech Mahindra (2.19%). The Nifty IT index fell 3%.
“The Dalal Street indices experienced a sharp drop to an eight-month low as market sentiment remained subdued. The decline was primarily driven by significant losses in heavyweight stocks, especially within the IT sector,” said Ameya Ranadive, chartered market technician, CFTe, and senior technical analyst, StoxBox.
“This weakness followed reports of declining consumer confidence in the U.S., casting a shadow over the country’s growth outlook. The broader market felt the impact, pulling down both small and mid-cap indices,” he added.
Ten out of 13 major sectoral indices traded lower, with auto, pharma, and FMCG among the three sectors showing positive performance.
Nandish Shah – Deputy Vice President, HDFC Securities said, “The Nifty extended its losing streak to a fifth consecutive session, succumbing to weak global cues and shedding 242 points, its lowest close since June 5, 2024.”
NSE cash market volumes were notably thin, 16% lower than the previous day and the lowest since January 1, 2025.
Nifty midcap 100 Index ended with the losses of 0.94% while Nifty small cap index closed with the losses of 1.02%. After early morning weakness, both Nifty midcap and smallcap Indices recovered nearly 1% from the intraday low.
The negative market breadth persisted, with declining shares outnumbering advancing shares for the second straight day, resulting in a discouraging advance-decline ratio of 0.44 on the BSE, Mr. Shah said.
Published – February 24, 2025 04:31 pm IST
