New Delhi, May 27 (HS): The domestic stock market closed lower today, experiencing significant fluctuations throughout the trading session. The day began on a weak note, with the market initially facing a notable decline due to selling pressure. However, at approximately 11 AM, buying activity helped the stock market recover momentarily, pushing it into positive territory. Unfortunately, just before noon, renewed selling pressure caused both indices to drop back into negative territory. By the end of the trading day, the Sensex had decreased by 0.76%, while the Nifty closed down by 0.70%. Notable gains were observed in the defense sector, and sectors such as PSU banks, pharmaceuticals, real estate, capital goods, and consumer durables ended positive. Conversely, heavy selling impacted the IT, automobile, and FMCG sectors, along with declines in the oil and gas, metal, public sector enterprise, and tech indices.

Despite the overall market weakness, buyers maintained strong activity in the broader market, resulting in a 0.18% increase in the BSE mid-cap index and a 0.19% rise in the small-cap index. However, the day's downturn caused a significant decline in investors' wealth, with losses exceeding ₹1 lakh crore. The market capitalization of BSE-listed companies fell to ₹443.66 lakh crore from ₹444.79 lakh crore from the previous trading day, leading to an approximate loss of ₹1.13 lakh crore for investors.

Active trading registered in 4,084 shares on the BSE, with 1,958 closing higher and 1,975 lower, while 151 remained unchanged. The NSE saw activity in 2,574 shares, with 1,205 gaining and 1,369 declining. Among the 30 shares in the Sensex, only 5 finished in the green, while 25 declined; in the Nifty, 11 shares closed higher, and 39 closed lower.

The BSE Sensex opened at 82,038.20, quickly dipping to 81,303.88 amid selling pressure, rebounding to 82,410.52 after buying at 11 AM, but ultimately closing at 81,551.63 with a loss of 624.82 points. Similarly, the NSE Nifty began trading at 24,956.65, falling to 24,750.70, and eventually closing at 24,826.20, down 174.95 points, despite a late recovery. Among notable stocks, Jio Financial and IndusInd Bank were among the top gainers, while Ultratech Cement and ITC dominated the losers’ list.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar