Mumbai: The Indian stock market ended in the red on Thursday, with the Sensex and Nifty down more than 1 percent.

Sensex was down 1190.34 points or 1.48 per cent to 79,043.74 at closing. Nifty was down 360.75 points or 1.49 per cent to 23,914.15.

IT stocks led this decline. The Nifty IT index witnessed heavy selling, and it was down more than two percent and closed at 42,968.75.

This decline in the Indian stock market aligned with its global counterparts. The market declined due to increased concerns over US President-elect Donald Trump’s policies and uncertainty about interest rate cuts in the US.

Midcap and smallcap stocks outperformed the large caps. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was up 28.40 points, or 0.05 percent, at 56,300.75, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index was up 8.70 points, or 0.05 percent, at 18,511.55.

On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), 2208 shares closed in green, 1,731 shares in red, and 106 shares remained unchanged.

Market experts said, “The overnight sell-off in the US market, driven by renewed uncertainty about the rate cut trajectory and rising geopolitical tension, led to a correction in heavyweight IT and consumer discretionary stocks.”

“Conversely, the broader market outperformed the frontline index due to a shift in the stance of FIIs and investors seeking opportunities in undervalued stocks,” they said.

On the sectoral indices, IT, auto, financial services, pharma, FMCG, metal, energy, Pvt Bank, infra, and commodities were major losers. However, PSU Bank, media, and realty were major gainers.

All the Sensex stocks closed in the red except SBI. M&M and Infosys were the top laggards.

Institutional activity on Wednesday was mixed. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers of equities worth Rs 7.78 crore, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) made net purchases of Rs 1,301.97 crore.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

–IANS