On Tuesday, benchmark equity indices soared to unprecedented levels, with the Sensex crossing the historic 75,000-mark for the first time during intra-day trading. However, profit-booking at higher levels led to a marginal decline by the session’s end. The 30-share BSE Sensex, after its record-breaking rally, dipped by 58.80 points or 0.08 percent to close at 74,683.70, having earlier climbed to an all-time high of 75,124.28, up by 381.78 points or 0.51 percent.
Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty concluded the day 23.55 points or 0.10 percent lower at 22,642.75, having reached a record peak of 22,768.40 earlier in the day, up by 102.1 points or 0.45 percent. Titan, Asian Paints, Reliance Industries, Tech Mahindra, UltraTech Cement, IndusInd Bank, Wipro, and ITC were among the notable underperformers in the Sensex basket. On the other hand, major gainers included ICICI Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Steel, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Nestle, and Mahindra & Mahindra.
In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge and smallcap gauge witnessed declines of 0.47 percent and 0.15 percent, respectively. Various sectors saw mixed performances, with consumer durables, industrials, capital goods, and telecommunications witnessing declines, while metal, realty, financial services, and technology sectors experienced gains.
On the global front, Asian markets like Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong settled positively, while Seoul ended lower. European markets were mostly trading lower, while Wall Street ended on a mixed note the previous day.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, attributed the profit-booking to anticipation surrounding key US inflation data, which could influence future rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve. Recent upbeat US employment and manufacturing data raised concerns about potential shifts in expectations regarding rate cuts this year.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) reportedly offloaded equities worth Rs 684.68 crore on Monday. Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark Brent crude rose by 0.18 percent to USD 90.54 a barrel.
On Monday, the BSE benchmark surged by 494.28 points or 0.67 percent to settle at a new closing peak of 74,742.50, while the NSE Nifty climbed by 152.60 points or 0.68 percent to 22,666.30.
