Mumbai: Benchmark equity indices ended Sunday’s special Diwali trading session on a subdued note, with a negative bias, as losses in banking and IT stocks weighed on market sentiment.
The Sensex declined 28.62 points, or 0.04 per cent, to settle at 80,999.40, while the Nifty fell 43.95 points, or 0.18 per cent, to close at 24,986.40.
The Nifty touched an intra-day high of 25,132 during the session before giving up its gains and settling below the 25,000 mark. The Sensex also witnessed volatility, touching a high of 81,442 and a low of 80,932 before closing nearly 29 points lower.
Among the Nifty constituents, SBI Life Insurance Company, InterGlobe Aviation and Bharti Airtel were among the biggest losers. On the other hand, Sun Pharma and Tata Steel emerged as major gainers during the special trading session, while Mahindra & Mahindra and InterGlobe Aviation were among the top laggards.
The broader market, however, showed resilience, with the Nifty MidCap 100 rising 0.13 per cent and the Nifty SmallCap index gaining 0.94 per cent.
Sectorally, Nifty Pharma and Nifty Healthcare were among the top-performing indices, while Nifty Bank and Nifty Private Bank witnessed the steepest declines.
“From a market perspective, we believe the outlook for the coming Samvat remains constructive, albeit with expectations of moderate and more selective returns,” market experts stated. “Earnings growth, rather than valuation expansion, is likely to be the primary driver of market performance going forward,” analysts said.
“As we step into the new Samvat, our view is that India remains well-positioned to deliver sustainable long-term growth. The focus should remain on quality, earnings resilience and prudent investing. We wish investors a prosperous Samvat filled with wealth creation and financial success,” market experts noted.
Muhurat trading is a special truncated session on the occasion of Diwali. Coinciding with Lakshmi Puja, it is considered auspicious and prosperous and marks the beginning of the Vikram Samvat, or the Hindu financial year.
(IANS)
