Closing bell: Sensex stumbles by 200 points, Nifty under the 24,600-mark; change in expiry day erases gains

The Indian benchmark indices could not hold on to today’s early gains, as Sensex closed at 80,157.88, down 207 points, or 0.26%, while the Nifty 50 ended the day with a loss of 45 points, or 0.18%, at 24,579.60. The Sensex split evenly, with 15 companies advancing and 15 declining. In the Nifty 50 list, 26 companies advanced, and 24 declined. 

Today’s top gainers were Tata Consumer Products, which rose by 2.77%, Nestle India and Powergrid Corporation of India, both rising over 2%. A major laggard that dragged the bourses was Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, which dipped by 2.34%. Heavyweights such as Mahindra and Mahindra and ICICI Bank, seeing share price decrease by 2.33% and 1.42% respectively, pulled the indices down. 

Nifty came under pressure on account of the revised derivatives expiry schedule, with today marking the first Tuesday settlement. Earlier, expiries were held on Thursdays, and the shift unsettled trading sentiment.

Broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices instead, with Nifty Smallcap rising by 0.52% and Nifty Midcap by 0.22%. The India VIX, which measures market volatility, spiked up by 3% during intraday, but cooled off towards the closing, bringing it to 11.40. 

Amongst sectoral indices, Nifty FMCG outshone, which was up by 1.12%, breaking its two-day downward streak. Nifty Energy and Nifty Metal trailed right behind, both rising by nearly 1% respectively. Nifty Bank and Nifty Financial Services were the major losers. AU Bank, ICICI Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank led the decline of the Bank index. 

Amidst individual stocks, tyre stocks soared high over 5% after the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA) urged the government to lower GST rates on tyres. Similarly, sugar stocks rose by 20%, as a new government policy prompts boosting ethanol production to achieve 20% ethanol blending in petrol.

"Domestic equities reversed early gains from strong macro data, ending lower on profit booking amid caution ahead of the GST Council meeting and F&O expiry, with banking stocks leading the decline. Sugar stocks rallied on relaxed ethanol norms, while export-oriented companies gained following dovish remarks by the US, renewing trade optimism. However, investors remain guarded, with a near-term focus on domestic consumption amid global uncertainty,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited.