Nifty down 38 points, Sensex slips 169 points; Realty and Banks Dragged
Sensex and Nifty Today 18 December 2023: Indian stock market indexes closed with minor cuts on Monday. The domestic markets opened slightly lower in a cautious mood and traded volatile amid weak global cues. The key indexes slipped in the second half and ended marginally lower.
On the domestic front, traders remained cautious, with the commerce ministry’s data showing that India’s merchandise exports declined by 2.83% to $33.90 billion in November 2023 against $34.89 billion a year ago. Imports also dipped to $54.48 billion in the month under consideration, compared to $56.95 billion registered in November 2022. However, the country`s trade deficit showed a positive trend, narrowing to $20.58 billion in November.
Some cautiousness also came as the Engineering Export Promotion Council of India (EEPC) report showed that India`s engineering goods exports registered a 3% year-on-year down in November to $7.85 billion. It further clarified the decline was primarily due to the festive season that disrupted operations in major engineering export belts across the country, particularly in northern and western regions.
Meanwhile, some support came from former Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya after he said that India will become the world’s third-largest economy by 2026 as its GDP in current dollar terms will reach $5 trillion in that year and further rise to $5.5 trillion in 2027.
Sensex and Nifty Today
The Nifty 50 index closed lower by 38 points or 0.18 percent and closed at 21418.65 levels, while the Sensex was down by 168.65 points or 0.24 percent and finished at 71315.10 levels. The Bank Nifty index ended lower by 275.85 points or 0.57 percent on the spot level and closed at 47867.70.
The broader markets outperformed their larger peers today, as the Nifty midcap index was up by 98.60 points or 0.22 percent and closed at 45685.15 levels. The Nifty smallcap index ended higher by 82.95 points or 0.56 percent at 14968.75.
Nifty 50 Top Gainers & Losers
The top gainers in the Nifty 50 index were Bajaj-Auto, Hindalco, Adani Ports, Sun Pharma, and Reliance and the top losers were Power Grid, ICICI Bank, ITC, JSW Steel, and TechM.
The top gainers in the Nifty midcap index were Bharat Dynamics, Yes Bank, and Torrent Power and the top losers were Union Bank, Godrej Properties, and Indian Bank.
The smallcap top gainers were Tata Tele Services, Deepak Fertiliser, and UTI AMC, while the top losers were SJVN, Radico, and Amber.
The most active stocks in the Nifty index in terms of value were Reliance, HDFC Bank, and SBI. The most active stocks in terms of volume were Tata Steel, Power Grid, and SBI.
On the sectoral front, Media, Pharma, and Metal closed higher, while the sectors that closed in the red were Realty, Banking, and Financial Services.
Global Stock Market Updates Today
The other Asian stock market indexes mostly closed lower on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei trimmed some early losses and closed lower by 0.65%, as investors remained cautious ahead of the Bank of Japan (BoJ) two-day final meeting that begins on Monday. Although BoJ will likely maintain the key rates unchanged, the comments at the press conference will be crucial for future policy.
Australia’s S&P ASX 200 index is down by 0.22%, snapping its six-day winning streak. South Korea’s Kospi erased intraday losses and ended marginally higher by 0.13% due to buying in defence stocks. Shanghai extended the previous week’s losses by 0.40%, ahead of the Loan Prime Rate due on Wednesday, while Hang Seng also ended lower by 0.98%. The Straits Times, Taiwan, and Jakarta ended red, while the SET Composite closed higher.
European stock markets are trading mixed after gaining the fifth straight week on Friday. Investors are looking ahead to the German Ifo index data later today.
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