Rout in Adani group shares, banks drag Sensex 874 points, Nifty ends at 17,600


Equity markets buckled under severe selling pressure to close at 3-month lows on Friday driven by an extended slump in Adani group stocks that soured overall market sentiment.

Banking stocks were the top laggards as claims of high debt of Adani firms made by Hindenburg in its recent report had a sentimentally negative impact on the banking space, especially PSU banks, analysts said.

The BSE Sensex cracked 874 points to close at 59,331, its lowest level since Oct 21, 2022 when it ended at 59,307. The NSE Nifty dropped to 17,604 with a massive loss of 288 points.

Adani Enterprises and Adani Ports were the leading Nifty losers, which ended 18 and 15 per cent lower, respectively. SBI, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank were next in line dropping up to 5 per cent.

Shares of other Adani firms–Adani Wilmar, Adani Transmission, Adani Green, Adani Total Gas, Adani Power, Ambuja Cement and ACC– closed with losses of 5-20 per cent on top of Wednesday’s decline, which came as short-seller Hindenburg Research said it held short positions in Adani Group companies through US-traded bonds and non-Indian-traded derivative instruments and accused the group of stock manipulation and accounting fraud.

Four Adani group stocks listed in the F&O (Futures & Options) segment – Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, ACC and Ambuja Cement witnessed a build-up of Open Interest (OI) on the short-side since the beginning of this week, which is a couple of days prior to the release of Hindenburg report.

As per Reuters, SEBI has increased scrutiny of deals by the Adani Group over the past year and will also study the report issued by Hindenburg Research to add to its own ongoing preliminary investigation into the group’s foreign portfolio investors. Read more

Shares of Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto and Dr Reddy’s firmly resisted Friday’s market crash on strong Q3 earnings. Besides, auto, pharma, FMCG indices were the only outperformers in a broad-based selloff, while the Nifty PSB and oil & gas indices were the worst hit with cuts of 5 per cent each.

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Sensex sheds 237 points dragged by HUL, RIL, Infosys; Nifty ends below 18,050


Equity markets ended Friday’s choppy trade with nominal cuts pulled down by losses in select heavyweights such as Reliance(1 per cent), HUL( 4 per cent), Asian Paints (3 per cent) and Infosys (1 per cent).

The BSE Sensex closed 237 points lower at 60,622 after it touched an intra-day high of 61,001. The NSE Nifty reached the day’s high of 18,145 before fizzling out gains and closing 80 points down at 18,028.

The other top frontline drags included Bajaj twins, Nestle, L&T, Bharti Airtel, Maruti, Tech M, Sun Pharma, JSW Steel and HDFC Life, which lost 1-3 per cent.

While Coal India, Power Grid, HDFC twins, ITC, ICICI Bank, SBI, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, and NTPC were among the handful of index gainers.

Broader markets bled more than benchmarks with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices falling up to 0.7 per cent.

Within sectors, Nifty consumer durables, FMCG, metals, realty and pharma indices suffered the most losses ending around 1 per cent lower each, while bank and financial pockets held ground and logged fractional gains.

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Sensex ends 303 points higher fuelled by Infosys, ICICI Bank; Nifty near 17950


Equity markets staged a firm turnaround intra-day to close Friday’s session with nominal gains powered by select index heavyweights such as Infosys, ICICI Bank, TCS and HUL, which gained over 1 per cent each.

Gradual easing in domestic and US retail inflation also aided sentiment and helped narrow the gap-down start. The BSE Sensex recovered 633 points from the day’s low and eventually ended 303 points higher at 60,261.

The NSE Nifty closed 98 points up at 17,957 level after bouncing back from the day’s lowest level of 17,774.

Other frontline stocks that supported the recovery included Tata Steel, IndusInd Bank, Ultratech Cement, Bajaj Finance, NTPC, Airtel, Adani Enterprises, Eicher Motors and BPCL, which gained 1-2 per cent.

On the flip side, top losers across the two benchmark indices included Titan, Nestle, ITC, L&T, Reliance and Apollo Hospitals.

The broader markets closed with slimmer gains. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices ended 0.09 and 0.2 per cent higher, respectively.

Within sectors, barring consumer durables, PSB and Metal indices on the Nifty logged in most gains, up over 1 per cent each, followed by IT and financial pockets.

Among stocks, HCL Tech firmly recovered the day’s losses and ended with a 0.4 per cent gain.

L&T Technology Services slumped 5.3 per cent on its plan to buy the smart world & communications business (SWC) from its parent L&T.

Banking stocks will be in the spotlight ahead of their Q3 earnings, particularly when the stock market is going through extreme volatility. HDFC Bank will declare its Q3FY23 results on Saturday, followed by Federal Bank on Monday.

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Financial, IT shares drag Sensex 453 points, ends below 60K; Nifty near 17,850


Weakness gripped Dalal Street on Friday as equity markets declined for a third straight session registering their first weekly loss of 2023. Investors remained on the sidelines as they awaited a key jobs report in the US due for release later today.

The jobs data will likely dictate the market trend in the US as strong job additions could mean continued monetary tightening by the Federal Reserve.

The BSE Sensex sank 683 points to the day’s low of 59,670 before closing 453 points lower at 59,900. The NSE Nifty touched a low of 17,796 and eventually pulled back to end 133 points lower at 17,859.

The top laggards that weighed on the benchmark indices were financial and IT shares. TCS, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj twins, Tech M, Kotak Bank, Infosys, Airtel, Tata Motors, Titan and Wipro led losses on Sensex, shedding 1-3 per cent, while JSW Steel was the top Nifty loser.

Handful of index winners included M&M, Reliance, Nestle, ITC, L&T, Britannia, BPCL and ONGC, which closed up to 1 per cent higher.

Besides, broader markets also could not escape the selloff and declined in line with benchmarks. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices slipped 0.7 per cent each.

Losses were equally spread across sectors. Nifty IT fell 2 per cent followed by 0.7-1 per cent cuts each in Bank, Financial, Metal, Realty and Pharma indices. FMCG and Consumer Durables outperformed with fractional gains.

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Sensex up 4.4% in 2022; ends last trading day 293 points lower at 60,841


After starting on an optimistic note, given the positive mood in global markets, the S&P BSE Sensex rallied to a high of 61393 in Friday’s morning trades. The benchmark index, thereafter, pared gains and slipped into the negative zone as the day progressed owing to weakness in index heavyweights ICICI Bank and HDFC twins.

A heavy bout of selling in late trade, saw the BSE index plunge to a low of 60,744 – down 293 points from the day’s high. The Sensex finally ended the day with a loss of 293 points at 60,841.

Despite the day’s loss, the BSE benchmark managed to gain 1.7 per cent this week, and also signed off the year 2022 on a winning note – 4.4 per cent higher.

The NSE Nifty 50 settled 86 points lower on the last trading day of the year, but was up 1.7 per cent this week and 4.3 per cent in 2022.

The broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices in trade today. The BSE Midcap index gained 0.4 per cent, while the Smallcap index advanced 0.8 per cent. The overall market breadth too was fairly positive, with nearly 2,200 advancing shares versus 1,300-odd declining stocks on the BSE.

In contrast the day’s performance, the broader indices were underperformers in the year 2022. The BSE Midcap index finished with a gain of 1.4 per cent as against the Sensex gain of 4.4 per cent. The Smallcap index was down 1.8 per cent for the year.

Sectorally, the BSE Consumer Durables index moved 0.8 per cent higher in trades on Friday. The Metal and Realty indices were the ofther notable gainers. On the other hand, FMCG, Power and Bankex finished in the negative zone.

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Sensex slumps 981 points, Nifty ends near 17,800; PSU index crashes 6%


Bears crawled on Dalal Street on Friday as wobbly global sentiment as Covid-19 scare in China triggered slowdown fears. With this, equity markets have settled lower for a fourth consecutive day.

The S&P BSE Sensex slumped 981 points or 1.6 per cent to end at 59,845, which is its lowest level since October 28. The index hit an intra-day low of 59,766 during the day dragged by Tata Steel, Tata Motors, SBI, Bajaj Finserv, Wipro, IndusInd Bank, Reliance, L&T, which shed 2-5 per cent.

The Nifty50, meanwhile, ended at 17,807, down 321 points or 1.8 per cent. The index sank to a low of 17,779 during the day.

The pain was even more severe in the broader market space where the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices fell 3 and 4 per cent, respectively.

The broad-based selling was led by public sector banks with the Nifty PSU Bank index tumbling nearly 6 per cent. This was followed by the Nifty Metal index (down over 4 per cent), and the Nifty Realty index (down 3 per cent).

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Sensex tanks 461 points, Nifty below 18,300 amid global rout; all sectors fall


Selling pressure intensified in late noon deals on Friday after reports emerged of fresh Russian onslaught on Ukrainian soil. According to media reports, at least three cities in Ukraine faced major missile attack on energy facilities and infrastructure. Meanwhile, recession fears in the US and Euro region, coupled with growth slowdown concerns back home, weighed on the sentiment.

Against this backdrop, the S&P BSE Sensex dropped 461 points, or 0.75 per cent, to settle at 61,338. The Nifty50, too, slumped 146 points or 0.79 per cent to end at 18,269.

Dr Reddy’s Labs, M&M, Asian Paints, SBI, TCS, Titan, Power Grid, and Ultratech Cement fell the most among the 27 losers within the Sensex pack. Adani Ports, BPCL, Bajaj Auto, and Hero MotoCorp were the additional laggards on the Nifty.

Tata Motors, HDFC Bank, HUL, and Tata Steel were the only large-cap gainers on the benchmark indices.

Meanwhile, in the broader markets, the BSE MidCap index declined 1.4 per cent, while the BSE SmallCap index dipped 0.9 per cent.

Among sectors, the Nifty PSU Bank index sunk the most, down nearly 3 per cent. This was followd by losses in the Nifty Realty, Pharma, and Media indices, down over 1 per cent each.

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Sensex sinks 389 points, Nifty below 18,500; IT, PSBs crack; HCL Tech down 7%


Bucking the global trend, domestic equity markets fell on Friday bogged down by profit booking in IT stocks, and heavyweights like Reliance Industries, L&T, and financials. The S&P BSE Sensex, which started about 100 points higher, erased gains and dropped over 700 points from the day’s high to hit a low of 61,889.

The index, eventually, closed at 62,182, down 389 points or 0.62 per cent. The Nifty50, meanwhile, breached below the 18,500-mark and ended at 18,497, down 113 points or 0.61 per cent. It hit a low of 18,410 during the day.

In the broader markets, the MidCap and SmallCap indices shed 0.45 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively.

Sectorally, defensive indices like the Nifty FMCG and Pharma held gains as they rose 0.8 per cent and 0.4 per cent. On the downside, the Nifty IT index crashed 3.16 per cent. Credit Suisse has warned of a 10 – 27 per cent valuation-led correction in tech-related stocks amid US macro headwinds.

The Nifty PSU Bank and Realty indices were other top laggards that tumbled 1.7 per cent and 1.5 per cent, respectively.

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Sensex snaps 8-day winning run, ends 415 points lower; IT, Auto stocks weigh


The frontline indices snapped their eight-day winning streak run as investors preferred to take home some profits ahead of the weekend and upcoming RBI policy next week. Auto and IT shares, in particular, witnessed selling pressure.

The S&P BSE Sensex dropped to a low of 62,680, and ended 415 points lower at 62,869. In the process, the benchmark trimmed its weekly gain to 575 points.

The NSE Nifty 50 settled just a shade below the 18,700-level, down 117 points on Friday.

Among the Sensex 30 shares, auto stocks were the major losers as they reacted to the monthly auto sales numbers. Mahindra & Mahindra slipped over 2 per cent. Maruti was down 1.5 per cent.

Hindustan Unilever, Nestle India, HDFC, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance, PowerGrid Corporation, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma, TCS and Infosys were the other significant losers, down over a per cent each.

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Sensex, Nifty end flat after listless trade; auto stocks rally, banks fall


Domestic benchmark indices remained listless on Friday as record high levels in indices triggered minor profit booking. The S&P BSE Sensex, which hit a new lifetime high of 62,448 earlier today, ended at 62,294, up 21 points or 0.03 per cent. The NSE Nifty50, meanwhile, ended at 18,513, up 29 points or 0.15 per cent. The index claimed new 52-week high of 18,535.

Reliance Industries, Wipro, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, Tech M, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki, and M&M were the top Sensex gainers, rising between 0.5 per cent and 1.2 per cent. HDFC Life, Tata Motors, Divis Labs, Hero MotoCorp, Coal India, Eocher Motors, and BPCL were the additional gainers on the Nifty50 index.

On the downside, Nestle India, ICICI Bank, Kotak Bank, Titan, HDFC Bank, HUL, and Bajaj Finance were the top laggards, down up to 1.4 per cent. Sectorally, the Nifty Realty index added 1.2 per cent, while the Nifty FMCG index fell 0.3 per cent.

In the broader market, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices rallied 0.77 per cent, and 0.67 per cent, respectively.

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