Indian stock market gets relief from profit booking, Sensex falls 721 points
New Delhi: Indian stock markets took a breather after three days of gains, with analysts partly attributing the decline to profit-booking. The Sensex closed 720.60 points, or 0.90 per cent, lower at 79,223.11, while the Nifty closed 183.90 points, or 0.76 per cent lower, at 24,004.75. Among sectoral indices, Nifty Bank, IT, Pharma, Healthcare and Financial Services were the biggest losers today, according to NSE data. Ajit Mishra, Senior Vice President (Research), Religare Broking Ltd, said, “After three days of gains, the market paused and declined by more than half a percent… Sectoral trends were mixed, with energy and FMCG sectors closing in the green, while IT and pharma closed in the red. Broader indices mirrored the benchmark move and declined by about half a percent each.” “This decline appears to be a general pause after the recent recovery and may continue until Nifty decisively crosses the next resistance at 24,250.” Religare Broking continues to advise focusing on stock-specific opportunities in line with sectoral trends. “In the near future, sectors such as FMCG, auto and energy are expected to outperform, so positions should be aligned accordingly.”
Indian stock indices were in a strong position at the start of 2025. The Sensex and Nifty rallied on January 1 and January 2. On Thursday, the benchmark indices recorded their best session in six weeks. Krishna Appala, Senior Research Analyst at CapitalMind Research, said, “The year has started on a positive note, with Nifty gaining 1.25 per cent and Nifty 500 gaining 1.4 per cent. This broad-based rally indicates a stable start to 2025, setting the stage for optimism. While market valuations appear stretched, especially in the mid- and small-cap segments, history reminds us that such conditions can persist longer than expected. Investors should focus on businesses with stable earnings growth and the ability to adapt to changing trends.”
Experts said the upcoming third quarter results season will now dictate the market movement. After this, the market focus is expected to shift to expectations from the Union Budget and policy decisions of the Trump 2.0 administration.
The Sensex is now down nearly 6000 points from its all-time high of 85,978 points. In 2024, Sensex and Nifty gain 9-10 per cent. In 2023, the Sensex and Nifty gained 16-17 per cent on a cumulative basis. In 2022, they each grew by only 3 per cent. Weak GDP growth, foreign fund outflows, rising food prices and slow consumption were some of the headwinds this year that kept many investors away in 2024.
