New Delhi, 10 June (H.S.):The domestic equity markets ended on a mixed and largely flat note on Wednesday despite witnessing strong gains during the trading session. Renewed tensions between the United States and Iran, profit-booking in select stocks at higher levels, and weak global cues weighed on investor sentiment. Although both benchmark indices advanced significantly during the day, late selling pressure erased most gains before the close.

Trading began on a flat note, but sustained buying support pushed both the Sensex and the Nifty higher during the first half of the session. However, profit-booking intensified after 1 p.m., dragging the indices lower. At the close, the BSE Sensex ended with a gain of 0.09 percent, while the NSE Nifty slipped 0.12 percent.

Throughout the day, buying interest remained concentrated in FMCG and private banking stocks. In contrast, heavy selling was witnessed in public sector enterprises, oil and gas, metal, and capital goods stocks. Automobile, consumer durables, healthcare, and information technology indices also ended in negative territory.

The broader market remained under pressure throughout the session. The Nifty Midcap Index closed down 1.49 percent, while the Nifty Smallcap Index declined 1.33 percent.

The day's trading activity resulted in a significant erosion of investor wealth. The total market capitalization of companies listed on the BSE declined to Rs 455.58 lakh crore (provisional) at the close of trade, compared with Rs 459.05 lakh crore in the previous session. As a result, investors suffered a notional loss of approximately Rs 3.47 lakh crore during the day.

A total of 4,369 stocks were actively traded on the BSE. Of these, 1,472 stocks advanced, 2,748 declined, and 149 remained unchanged. On the NSE, 2,992 stocks witnessed active trading, with 802 ending in positive territory and 2,190 closing lower.

Among the 30 Sensex constituents, 12 stocks ended with gains while 18 closed in the red. Similarly, among the 50 Nifty constituents, 19 stocks advanced and 31 declined.

The BSE Sensex opened 69.51 points higher at 73,988.27. Soon after the opening bell, buying momentum strengthened and pushed the index steadily upward. Supported by strong demand, the Sensex surged to an intraday high of 74,613.01, up 694.25 points, around 1 p.m.

Thereafter, profit-booking emerged at higher levels, triggering a sharp reversal. Continuous selling dragged the index down by more than 715 points from its intraday peak, touching a low of 73,897.57, down 21.19 points from the previous close, shortly before the end of trading. Mild buying in the final minutes helped the index recover and settle 64.42 points higher at 73,983.18.

In contrast, the NSE Nifty opened 8.15 points lower at 23,233.95. Buying support soon lifted the benchmark, and by around 1 p.m. it had climbed 183.25 points to an intraday high of 23,425.35.

However, growing selling pressure during the latter half of the session led to a sharp correction. Shortly before the close, the Nifty had fallen more than 240 points from its day's high and slipped to 23,184.60, down 57.50 points. A modest recovery driven by intraday settlement-related buying helped the index recoup nearly 30 points from the day's low, before ending 27.15 points lower at 23,214.95.

Among the blue-chip stocks, Nestlé India emerged as the top gainer, rising 1.98 percent. It was followed by Hindustan Unilever, which gained 1.72 percent, Axis Bank up 1.71 percent, Kotak Mahindra Bank advancing 1.68 percent, and ICICI Bank rising 1.44 percent.

On the losing side, Hindalco Industries was the worst performer, declining 3.47 percent. Coal India fell 3.41 percent, Infosys dropped 2.97 percent, ONGC lost 2.74 percent, and Eternal declined 2.38 percent, making them the top five laggards of the day.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar