Fag-end selling drags Sensex, Nifty lower; UPL crashes 11%, Tata Motors rises 6%

Domestic equity markets saw a sharp selling in the fag-end of the session on Monday and settled sharply lower from day's high. Headline indices gave up early gains to slip into negative territory on the back of muted global cues. Rise in the US bond yields, suring US dollar and crackdown in the Chinese stocks weighed on the sentiments at Dalal Street, triggering profit booking.

The 30-share pack BSE Sensex gyrated in a range of 800 points, but finally settled at 71,731.42, dropping 354.21 points, or 0.49 per cent. NSE's Nifty50 gave up 82.10 points, or 0.38 per cent, to end the session at 21,771.70. In the broader markets, BSE midcap index inched up marginally, while the BSE smallcap index settled in slightly lower.

"The Nifty index has formed a double top pattern on the daily chart, signaling a potential cautionary stance for traders. The resistance level is identified at 22,200, and a decisive break above this on a closing basis could invalidate the bearish outlook, said Kunal Shah, Senior Technical  & Derivative Analyst, LKP Securities.

"Conversely, the support for the index is situated at 21,650, coinciding with its 20 DMA. A breach below this support level might intensify selling pressure in the market," he said.

On a sectoral front, the Nifty pharma index rose 1.8 per cent, while the Nifty healthcare index was up 1.5 per cent. Nifty oil & gas index advanced 1.45 per cent, while the Nifty auto index added 1.2 per cent for the day. Among the laggards, the Nifty consumer durable index was down 1.2 per cent, followed by the Nifty financial services and FMCG indices.

In the Nifty50 pack, Tata Motors surged 5.8 per cent after a strong Q3 performance, while Coal India rose 5.1 per cent. Bharat Petroleum, Cipla and Sun Pharma gained 3 per cent each for the day. UPL was the biggest aggard for the day, slumping more than 11 per cent after disappointing Q3 results. Bajaj Finance, HDFC Life Insurance Company and Bharti Airtel shed 3 per cent.

The Indian market witnessed a sharp fall during the final hours of today's trading. The robust US job data for January indicates that the expected rate cuts from the Fed in the coming year may be less imminent, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

"This is reflected in the recent sharp climb in US bond yields to above 4% levels, which prompted investors to book profit from the post interim Budget rally amidst elevated valuations. However, the current drop in crude prices provides support and restrains the decline," he added.

A total of 4,097 shares were traded on BSE on Monday, of which 2,130 settled with cuts. 1,823 stocks ended the session with gains while 144 shares remained unchanged. During the day, 556 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 311 shares tested the lower circuit levels for the day.

In the broader markets, Unichem Laboratories hit a 20 per cent upper circuit after strong Q3 results, while Fino Payments Bank also jumped on the similar lines. Uco Bank was up 14 cent cent, while Indian Overseas Bank added 12 per cent for the day. Tourism Finance Corporation rose 13 per cent for the day.

Among the laggards, Jagsonpal Pharma tanked more than 17 per cent, while One97 Communications' Paytm continued to hit 10 per cent lower circuit. Tilak Nagar Industries plunged 9 per cent, while Bank of India was also down on the similar lines. GHCL was down 8 per cent for the day.

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