New Delhi, 04 August (H.S.):

Domestic equity markets remained under pressure throughout the trading session on Tuesday and closed lower amid uncertainty over the new Closing Auction Session (CAS) system. A rise in international crude oil prices also weakened market sentiment. Due to the continued pressure, the Sensex plunged more than 930 points during intraday trade, while the Nifty also slipped over 340 points. At the end of the trading session, the Sensex declined 0.27 per cent, while the Nifty fell 0.64 per cent.

The BSE Sensex opened on a positive note, gaining 439.94 points or 0.63 per cent at 79,132.97. Soon after opening, the index touched an intraday high of 79,143.15, showing marginal gains. However, selling pressure emerged soon after, dragging the index lower. During the first half of the session, buyers attempted several times to build momentum through fresh purchases, but their efforts failed due to sustained selling pressure.

By 11:30 a.m., the Sensex had erased all its early gains and slipped into negative territory. Selling continued thereafter, pushing the index down by 931.28 points from its day's high to 78,211.87, a decline of 427.16 points or 0.54 per cent, around 2 p.m. Later, buying interest returned, helping the index recover 217.08 points from the day's low. The Sensex finally closed 210.08 points lower at 78,428.95.

In contrast, the NSE Nifty opened 70.40 points or 0.28 per cent lower at 24,703.90. The index came under selling pressure immediately after the opening, although buyers attempted periodic recoveries. However, strong selling pressure kept the index under strain throughout the session.

Shortly before the market closed, the Nifty fell 346.35 points or 1.40 per cent to touch 24,427.95. Buying during the closing auction session helped the index recover 186.95 points from the day's low, and it eventually ended 159.40 points lower at 24,614.90.

During Tuesday's trading session, shares of FMCG, IT, and private banking sectors witnessed sustained selling pressure. The Nifty Realty index also declined more than 2 per cent. Automobile, oil and gas, and public sector enterprise indices also ended in the red. On the other hand, metal, healthcare, consumer durables, and capital goods indices closed with gains.

The broader market witnessed mixed trends. The Nifty Midcap index ended 0.29 per cent lower, while the Smallcap index gained 0.23 per cent.

The decline in the stock market reduced investors' wealth by nearly Rs 3 lakh crore. The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies declined to Rs 489.41 lakh crore (provisional) after Tuesday's trade, compared with Rs 492.31 lakh crore on the previous trading day, Monday. This resulted in an estimated loss of around Rs 2.90 lakh crore for investors.

During the day's trading, 4,432 shares were actively traded on the BSE. Of these, 2,108 shares closed higher, 2,128 shares declined, and 196 shares ended unchanged. On the NSE, 3,006 shares witnessed active trading, with 1,388 shares closing in the green and 1,618 shares ending in the red.

Among the 30 Sensex constituents, 16 stocks closed with gains while 14 ended lower. In the Nifty 50 index, 14 stocks closed higher, 35 declined, and one remained unchanged.

Among the major gainers in the stock market, Apollo Hospitals rose 2.61 per cent, Hindalco Industries gained 2.52 per cent, Trent Ltd increased 1.89 per cent, Jio Financial Services advanced 0.76 per cent, and ITC climbed 0.70 per cent.

On the other hand, Grasim Industries declined 3.74 per cent, HDFC Life fell 3.10 per cent, Bajaj Auto dropped 2.16 per cent, Reliance Industries declined 2.13 per cent, and Max Healthcare fell 2.13 per cent, making them the top five losers of the day.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar