Stock market today: Sensex, Nifty 50 end lower amid weak global cues; IT, metals, banks drag

IT stocks had a 1.17% decline ahead of a significant US inflation report that is expected to impact the Federal Reserve’s future rate trajectory later this week. A sizable portion of IT businesses’ income comes from the US. In anticipation of significant inflation data later in the week, particularly from Europe and Japan, Asian markets remained muted.

Also Read: Sensex Today | Market Close Highlights : Sensex ends down 350pts, Nifty at 22,120; IT, Metal down 1%, O&G, Realty up

“Nifty 50 takes a breather after previous week’s spectacular rally. Broader markets and most of the sectoral indices too, felt the profit-booking heat while they ended the day in red,” said Prashanth Tapse, Research Analyst, Senior Vice President of Research at Mehta Equities.

The 30-share BSE Sensex ended lower by 352.67 points lower or 0.48% at 72,790.13 level while the Nifty 50 closed at 22,122.05 level, down 90.65 points or 0.41%. On the broader market front, the Nifty Midcap 100 closed 0.36% lower, and the Nifty SmallCap 100 closed 0.26% lower.

“The market took a breather after the recent runup as investors’ focus shifted from earnings to economic triggers this week. The US and India GDP data, eurozone inflation, and US jobless claim data will be influential economic numbers for the central bank to take a call on interest rates, which will dictate market sentiment in the near term. The uncertainty over demand and high US inventory pushed oil prices down,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Also Read: Top Gainers and Losers today on 26 February, 2024: Larsen & Toubro, Power Grid Corporation Of India, Asian Paints, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise among most active stocks; Check full list here

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In the midst of a deluge of data this week that will help fine-tune expectations for future rate changes by central banks, Asian markets fell on Monday, according to a report by Reuters. Meanwhile, currencies were mostly stable. Shares in Singapore fell as much as 1%, reaching their lowest level since February 15.Shares in South Korea dropped 1.4%. 

Monday’s session saw the closing of Japan’s Nikkei in green, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite Index both in red.

Top Nifty 50 gainers and losers today

As many as 12 stocks settled in the green in the Nifty 50 index while the rest 37 ended in red.

Shares of Larsen & Toubro Ltd (up 2.43%), Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (up 1.99%), Adani Enterprises Ltd (up 1.67%), Tata Consumer Products Ltd (up 1.53%), and SBI Life Insurance Company Ltd (up 1.49%).

On the other side, Asian Paints Ltd (down 3.95%), Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd (down 2.62%), Hindalco Industries Ltd (down 2.47%), Divi’s Laboratories Ltd (down 2.05%), and Tech Mahindra Ltd (down 2.00%).

Sectoral indices today

Nifty IT and the Nifty Metal index were the two biggest losers, down 1.17% and 0.94%, respectively.

Among the other laggards were, Nifty Bank (down 0.50%), Nifty Financial Services (down 0.28%), Nifty Media (down 0.37%), Nifty Pharma (down 0.48%), Nifty PSU Bank (down 0.50%), Nifty Healthcare (down 0.84%), and Nifty Consumer Durables (down 0.89%).

On the other side, Nifty Auto (up 0.10%) and Nifty Oil & Gas (up 0.12%) were the only two gainers. 

Also Read: PSU banks’ valuations still reasonable despite sharp re-rating, says Motilal Oswal; SBI, Union Bank among top picks

Technical Views on Markets

According to Tejas Shah, Technical Research, JM Financial & BlinkX, the Nifty 50  lost 91 points over the day to close at 22,122. It started on a weak note considering global cues in yesterday’s session and remained weak throughout the entire trading session. 

The positive key take away for Nifty 50 is that it is holding above the psychological support of 22,000 on a closing basis. The short term moving averages are just below the price action and should continue to support the indices on every decline. Support for the Nifty 50 is now seen at 22,075 and 22,000 levels. On the higher side, the immediate resistance zone for Nifty 50 is at 22,250-300 levels and the next resistance is at 22,500 mark, said Shah.

“The Bank Nifty was an underperforming sector as compared to Nifty in yesterday’s trading session. However, the short term trading chart set-up for Bank nifty is still positive. The important key take away for Bank nifty is that it is bouncing back from the lower levels and is also holding above the 50 Day Exponential moving average which is currently placed at 46,233 levels. On the downside, the support zone lies at 46,400-500 / 46,000-200 while the resistance is seen at 46,800-900 / 47,350-400,” explained Tejas.

Also Read: Q3 results review: PL adds IndiGo, Astral, ups exposure in RIL, Airtel; cuts weight of HDFC Bank, ITC in model portfolio

Disclaimer: The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts, experts and broking companies, not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decision.

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Published: 26 Feb 2024, 03:30 PM IST