Closing Bell: Sensex, Nifty recover from day’s low but still end in red; Trent, Coal India, Bajaj Finserv shares lead fall

Indian equity indices faced choppy trade in today’s session, as investors resorted to profit booking after tracking positive cues from both global and domestic fronts. The BSE Sensex declined by 522 points to 84,219.39, while the NSE Nifty50 was down by 134.85 points, or 0.52%, to settle at 25,831.50.

Global cues were bolstered by thawing US-China ties, as both Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are due to meet to discuss trade deals later this week. Meanwhile, strong earnings performance by companies in the second quarter of the current financial year also boosted investors' confidence, which led yesterday’s rally, thereby resuming the indices’ advancement.

The Shanghai Composite rose to cross the 4000-point barrier for the first time since 2015, only to close lower at 3,988 points, or 0.22%, as investors waited for further progress in the trade talks.

Sensex and Nifty were in tumultuous waters since the start of today’s session, with an initial decline, then rose to make up for the pared gains, only to decline yet again.

Leading today’s fall was Bajaj Finserv, declining by 1.48%, while Coal India and Trent also dwindled by 1.35%.

On the other hand, Tata Steel and JSW Steel rallied by 3% each, while other steel companies such as Jindal Steel and SAIL also rose by 3.41% and 1.77%, respectively. JSW Steel went on to hit a fresh 52-week high of ₹1,186.40, while Tata Steel is trailing by a 1% from its yearly highs. Due to this, Nifty Metal too soared by 1.26%, while recording a new 52-week high as well of 10,624.65 intraday.

Nifty PSU Bank outperformed its sectoral peers, rising by 1.32%, as a Reuters report stated that India is planning to more than double the current foreign investment cap in state-run lenders to 49%. Indian Bank advanced by 3.58%, and Bank of Maharashtra rose by 2.04%.

Nifty Realty was the worst performer, declining by 1%, followed by Nifty IT and Nifty Consumer Goods, down by nearly 0.75%.

Broader markets traded mixed, with Nifty Midcap 50 and Nifty Smallcap 100 rising barely 0.1%. India VIX was flat, up by 0.80%, to settle at 11.95.