As the bells rang for the end of the trading session on April 9, the Indian stock markets wrapped up the day on a somber note. With benchmark indices falling across the board, investors witnessed a broad-based sell-off led by key sectors like IT, Realty, and PSU Banks.
Sensex, Nifty close lower
The Sensex closed the day at 73,847.15, slipping 379.93 points or 0.51, while the Nifty ended at 22,399.15, down 136.70 points or 0.61. The sell-off comes just ahead of the market holiday on April 10, when both BSE and NSE will remain closed in observance of Shri Mahavir Jayanti, marking the birth anniversary of Lord Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara in Jainism.
Broader markets in the red too
It wasn’t just the large-cap stocks that took a hit. The BSE Midcap index ended lower at 39,546.54, down 0.73, while the BSE Smallcap index closed at 44,446.07, falling 1.08. The market breadth was clearly tilted in favour of declines, with over 2,200 stocks ending in the red versus 1,500 advances.
Nifty Bank dips, Dragged by PSU and Private Banks
Banking stocks also came under pressure. The Nifty Bank index finished at 50,240.15, down by 270.85 points or 0.545, largely impacted by weakness in PSU bank names, which shed around 2% for the day.
Sector Snapshot: FMCG shines, others fade
Among the sectoral indices, FMCG emerged as the lone warrior, gaining around 1.5%, followed by Consumer Durables, which managed a mild 0.3% uptick. On the other hand, key sectors like IT, Realty, and PSU Banks fell around 2% each, reflecting investor caution amid global and domestic uncertainties.
Gainers and Losers
On the Nifty, top laggards included names from the tech and banking space. Top gainers were Nestle, HUL, Tata Consumer, Titan, Power Grid Corp. On the other hand, the key laggards were Wipro, SBI, Tech Mahindra, L&T, Trent
RBI cuts repo rate
Adding a twist to the day’s developments, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced a 25 basis point cut in the repo rate, bringing it down to 6.00%. This move is expected to lower EMIs for borrowers, as banks are likely to pass on the benefit by reducing lending rates. This is the second rate cut this year, following a similar move in February, when the rate was brought down to 6.25%.
RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said, “The Monetary Policy Committee voted unanimously to reduce the repo rate, aiming to support growth while keeping inflation within target.”