New Delhi, 23 October (H.S.): The domestic equity market came under pressure during early trading on Friday, with the Sensex and Nifty surrendering their initial gains and slipping into negative territory. Both benchmark indices opened higher, supported by an initial wave of buying that lifted market sentiment. However, selling pressure soon emerged, dragging the indices lower. After the first hour of trading, the Sensex was down 0.58 per cent, while the Nifty had declined 0.86 per cent.
The BSE Sensex opened at 73,665.64, gaining 416.25 points, or 0.57 per cent. Volatility set in almost immediately after the opening bell, although buying support initially pushed the index to an intraday high of 73,766.51. Gains in heavyweight stocks, including ICICI Bank and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), provided some support to the market. However, selling in shares of other major companies quickly erased the Sensex’s entire opening advance, pushing it into the red. The index subsequently continued to decline amid sustained selling pressure.
At 10:15 a.m., after the first hour of trading, the Sensex was down 423.14 points, or 0.58 per cent, at 72,826.25.
The NSE Nifty followed a similar trajectory. The index opened at 22,742.20, up 54.55 points, or 0.24 per cent. Initial buying lifted it to an intraday high of 22,787.25. However, sellers soon took control, preventing the index from sustaining its gains. Persistent selling erased the Nifty’s early advance and pushed it into negative territory.
At 10:15 a.m., the Nifty was trading at 22,493.25, down 194.40 points, or 0.86 per cent.
Market breadth remained decisively negative during the early session. A total of 2,973 stocks were actively traded, of which 509 advanced while 2,464 declined. Among the 30 constituents of the Sensex, eight were trading in positive territory and 22 were in the red. On the Nifty, 11 stocks were advancing, while 39 were recording losses.
Among the market’s major companies, TCS, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Industries were trading higher, with gains ranging from 0.13 per cent to 2.63 per cent after the first hour of trading.
On the other hand, Hindalco Industries, Tata Steel, Jio Financial Services, Titan Company and TMPV were among the major laggards, declining between 2.58 per cent and 3.51 per cent.
In the previous trading session on Thursday, the domestic equity market had closed lower. The Sensex fell 460.30 points, or 0.62 per cent, to settle at 73,249.39, while the Nifty declined 123.70 points, or 0.54 per cent, to close at 22,687.65.
---------------
Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
