Finance
The key benchmark indices exhibited a tepid trading session on Monday, as global markets displayed a mixed trend after US central banker Christopher Waller warned against getting carried away by one inflation number, saying it would take a string of soft reports for the central banker to ease off the brakes.
The S&P BSE Sensex opened slightly lower at 61,766, but quickly recovered and reached a high of 61,916. The index, however, was unable to maintain its gains as weakness in FMCG heavyweights dragged the benchmark back into the red. The BSE 30-share index hit a low of 61,572 before closing 171 points lower at 61,624.
The NSE Nifty fluctuated within a narrow range of 88-odd points before settling with a loss of 29 points at 18,329.
Dr. Reddy’s dropped more than 4% among the Sensex 30 stocks. ITC fell by 2.5 percent. Other major losers included Hindustan Unilever, SBI, ICICI Bank, and Nestle, which were all down more than a percent. PowerGrid Corporation, Kotak Bank, Tata Steel, and IndusInd Bank all gained a percentage point.
The broader indices had a lackluster trading session as well. The BSE Midcap index finished almost unchanged, while the Smallcap index gained 0.2%.
Sectorally, the BSE FMCG index fell 1.3%. Another notable loser was the Power index. The Realty index increased by 1%, while the IT index increased by 0.7%.
The overall market breadth was slightly negative, with nearly 1,900 declining stocks outnumbering 1,700 advancing shares on the BSE.
Among individual stocks, LIC rose 6% after the company reported an 11-fold increase in profit in the second quarter compared to the previous year.
Source:BS
