Sensex Slips 191 Points; Nifty Ends At 17,004 As Banking, Auto Stocks Drag
New Delhi: The Indian equity benchmarks fell on Friday after rising for three-straight sessions led by losses in banking and auto stocks. The 30-share BSE Sensex slipped 191 points or 0.33 per cent to close at 57,124, and the broader NSE Nifty moved 69 points or 0.40 per cent down to settle at 17,004. Both the domestic indices traded on a highly volatile note as a continued global surge in the Omicron coronavirus variant kept investors on the edge.
Mid- and small-cap shares finished lower as Nifty Midcap 100 index plunged 1.05 per cent and Nifty Smallcap 100 index cracked 0.52 per cent.
On the stock-specific front, Grasim was the top Nifty laggard as the stock slipped 2.93 per cent to Rs 1,611. NTPC, Eicher Motors, ONGC and Mahindra & Mahindra were also among the losers.
On the flip side, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, SBI Life, Asian Paints and Wipro attracted gains.
14 out of 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- settled in red. Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Bank and Nifty Auto plunged as much as 1.94 per cent. However, Nifty IT outperformed the index by rising as much as 0.98 per cent.
The overall market breadth stood negative as 1,580 shares advanced while 1,749 declined on BSE.
Major laggards on the BSE platform included NTPC, Mahindra & Mahindra, PowerGrid, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Dr Reddy's and Bajaj Finserv with their shares falling as much as 2.73 per cent.
Earlier, both indices had rebounded for three consecutive days after plunging as much as 3 per cent on Monday.
"The overall trend is still negative ... We need to have more clarity over the new variant and its impact. We are seeing different trends in different countries," Ajit Mishra, Vice President Research, Religare Broking Ltd, told news agency Reuters.
Markets are trading in line with global peers, but it will be difficult to extend the rebound despite rising Covid-19 cases, he added.
Meanwhile, shares of defence solutions provider Data Patterns (India) made a strong debut at the exchanges. The stock got listed at a premium of 48 per cent.
