Sensex, Nifty fall amid muted global cues; BF Utilities rises 20%, IRFC tanks 6%

It was a bear attack on Dalal Street on Thursday as headline indices settled with cuts amid the weekly expiry of the F&O derivative contracts. Feeble global cues from US and China, coupled with selling in index heavyweights dragged the markets lower for the day. Rising global uncertainties have resulted in the risk aversion at Dalal Street.

Concerns over China's economy in the wake of subdued data over the last few sessions is denting the markets sentiments. Furthermore, the minutes of the Federal Reserve's July policy meeting showed members were divided on the need for further rate hikes. The US dollar index is hovering near its 2-month highs, signaling a potential sell-off from the overseas investors.

Profit taking came to the fore amid weak global cues, as rising US bond yields and fall in the currency levels weighed on the equity market sentiment. Investors are also worried about further rate hikes coupled with deflation and slowing demand in China, which has been prompting investors to flee equity markets amid choppy trends, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Research, Kotak Securities.

For the day, BSE's barometer Sensex dropped 388.40 points, or 0.59 per cent, to settle at 65,151.02 and NSE's Nifty tanked 99.75 points to end the day at 19,365.25. Broader markets outperformed the headline indices as BSE midcap and smallcap indices settled with mild gains. Fear gauge India VIX spiked about a per cent to 12.24-levels.

The weekly expiry day started on a muted note. Bears struck in the morning trade itself and Index almost retested its strong support of 19,300. In the last session, a marginal recovery was witnessed from the lower levels, said  Aditya Gaggar, Director of Progressive Shares.

"On the daily chart, Nifty50 has made a bearish candle but a range of 19,260-19,300 acts as a strong support zone, and a convincing close below the mentioned range will open the gate for 19,200 while on the higher side, the immediate resistance is 19,465 followed by 19,630," he said.

On a sectoral front,  the Nifty consumer durable index gained about 2 per cent, while the Nifty PSU bank index rose over a per cent. The Nifty realty index also managed to settle in green. The Nifty Oil & Gas and FMCG index dropped about a per cent each. Nifty IT and healthcare indices were the other key laggards.

On the Nifty50 pack, ITC and LTIMindTree topped among the gainers and dropped over 2 per cent each. Power Grid, Reliance Industries and Larsen & Toubro also posted similar falls. Nestle India, Divis Laboratories, Apollo Hospital Enterprises, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Eicher Motors were among the other top laggards.

Among the gainers, Adani Ports surged more than 4 per cent, while Titan Company gained more than 2 per cent for the day. Adani Enterprises, State Bank of India and Bajaj Auto added over a per cent each. Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Tata Consumer Products were the key gainers on the blue-chip index.

The mounting influence of weak global cues hindered the domestic market's ability to recoup, resulting in sustained selling pressure. The release of Fed minutes unveiled a divided stance among its members regarding the necessity of additional rate hikes, contrasting the previously anticipated rate pause, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

"Concurrently, the Indian rupee experienced a decline due to the dollar index surpassing 103.5; however, likely intervention from the RBI offered a degree of support. Moreover, the escalation of US bond yields is expected to limit the influx of foreign investments into the Indian market, further impacting market dynamics," he said.

A total of 3,740 shares were traded on BSE on Thursday, of which 1,835 settled higher. 1,739 stocks ended the session with cuts while 166 shares remained unchanged. A total of 263 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 233 shares tested the lower circuit levels for the day.

In the broader markets, BF Utilities and BF Investments hit an upper circuit of 20 per cent each. Coffee Day Enterprises surged about 18 per cent, while Emudhra settled 17 per cent up. DB Realty, Roto Pumps and Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri rose 11 per cent each for the day.

Among the losers, Globus Spirits and Indian Railway Finance Corporation dropped 7 per cent each. Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning India and Texmaco Infrastructure tumbled 6 per cent each. ISGEC Heavy Engineering, Prudent Corporate Advisory and Llyods Steel Industries dropped 5 per cent each for the day.

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