The domestic key equity indices closed on a flat note for the second consecutive session. However, the volatility index has sharply risen in today’s trade by 6.5% to 18.49 level in the midst of Indo-Pak tension rising after the Pahalgam terror attack in India’s union territory, Jammu & Kashmir.
On Wednesday, the Nifty 50 settled 2 points or 0.01% lower at 24,334.20. The BSE Sensex declined 46 points or 0.06% to finish at 80,242.24.
“The Nifty continues to consolidate within a narrow range as traders preferred to remain on the sidelines ahead of the holiday. However, with the index sustaining above the critical 20 EMA on the daily timeframe, the bullish trend remains intact. Momentum also remains strong, with the RSI holding above 50 and showing a bullish crossover,” said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities.
The broad market performed well in April, driven by reduced tariff risks, a potential US-India trade deal, and strong FII inflows. However, momentum is being capped by rising tensions between India and Pakistan and muted Q4 results, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments. “This negative bias is expected to persist in the near term, but the long-term outlook remains positive due to the minimal financial impact from the conflict,” he added.
5 big highlights from today’s market action-
Indices remained flat in intraday trade
The indices remained muted for the whole day but saw a sudden sell-off during the last five minutes, but again recouped those losses to close on muted lines. The Sensex and Nifty 50 both closed the session 0.1% lower.
Top gainers
HDFC Life Insurance was the top gainer in the Nifty 50 in Wednesday’s flat trade, closing 4.19% higher. It was followed by the auto giant Maruti Suzuki, SBI Life Insurance, Bharti Airtel, and Sun Pharmaceuticals.
Top losers
Meanwhile, the shares of Bajaj twins, Bajaj Finserv and Bajaj Finance, held the seat of top laggard in the Nifty 50. It was followed by Trent, Tata Motors, and State Bank of India.
Sectoral Index
The Nifty Realty outperformed and closed the highest among the sectoral indices, surging 1.9% to a 885.85 level in Wednesday’s trade. However, the PSU Bank and pharma stocks dragged the indices, falling 2.23% and 0.88% respectively.
The Nifty Bank underperformed key indices, declining 304 points or 0.55% to close at 55,087. The BSE Midcap fell 310 points or 0.72% to close at 42,883.72.
In the broader markets, small- and mid-cap stocks closed on a lower note, breaking ranks with the overall market sentiments.
Market breadth remained neutral
The overall market breadth remained in favour of bears. Out of 2,927 stocks traded, 631 advanced and 2,228 declined. Also, 68 stocks remained unchanged. Today, 24 stocks hit a fresh 52-week high compared with 30 stocks hitting a 52-week low. Adding to that, 37 stocks touched the upper circuit and 81 were at the lower circuit.