CHENNAI: The Indian stock market witnessed a sharp downturn on Thursday (May 22), with benchmark indices ending deep in the red as investors offloaded equities across the board. Persistent selling pressure, particularly in heavyweight sectors such as Auto, IT, and FMCG, dragged the markets lower despite a stable start.
The BSE Sensex fell 644.64 points, or 0.79%, to close at 80,951.99, while the broader NSE Nifty 50 lost 203.75 points, or 0.82%, to settle at 24,609.70. The Nifty Bank index also underperformed, declining 0.24% to end at 54,941.30.
Markets Reverse Gains, Finish Lower After Intraday Volatility
After briefly trading in the green during early hours, benchmark indices reversed direction sharply in afternoon trade. The Sensex plummeted over 1,100 points intraday, while the Nifty 50 briefly breached the 24,500 level, rattled by a wave of profit booking and global risk-off cues.
Sectoral Bloodbath: IT, Auto, FMCG Lead the Fall
All major sectoral indices ended in the red.
Auto stocks saw heavy selling, with Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, Maruti, Ashok Leyland, and Exide Industries losing over 1%.
The IT sector cracked as the Nifty IT index dropped over 1%, impacted by rising US bond yields. Tech Mahindra fell 2%, followed by cuts in Wipro, Persistent Systems, TCS, and Infosys.
FMCG names also bore the brunt, with Colgate-Palmolive plunging 6%. Losses were also seen in Varun Beverages, Marico, United Breweries, and ITC.
Few Stocks Buck the Trend
Amid the broad decline, a handful of counters managed to eke out gains:
In the Sensex-30 pack, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel, and UltraTech Cement closed in positive territory, providing some cushion to the benchmarks.
Sectoral Drivers
While most sectors faltered, shipping stocks surged nearly 4%, buoyed by positive global cues and optimism in global trade. Gains were also seen in sectors like plastic products, containers & packaging, media & entertainment, and footwear. These sectors posted moderate gains between 0.5% and 1.5%.
Conversely, retail stocks saw a sharp sell-off, plunging over 4.5%. Photographic products, oil & gas, and FMCG were also among the laggards.
Top losers on Thursday's trade included Mahindra & Mahindra, Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Bajaj Finserv, ITC and NTPC.
Global Cues and Market Outlook
Weak global sentiment, led by a sell-off in US bonds and concerns around inflation and interest rate outlook, weighed on investor sentiment. With the US Federal Reserve reiterating a data-dependent approach, traders remained risk-averse.
Volatility is likely to persist in the near term as markets continue to track global macro indicators, FII flows, and domestic earnings.