Indian equity benchmarks traded on a cautious note on Monday due to a lack of clear directional cues amid the Venezuela crisis. Weakness in IT stocks and lingering concerns over potential additional US tariffs weighed on sentiment, offsetting selective buying driven by positive corporate updates and expectations of improved quarterly earnings.
Sensex declined marginally by 155.95 pts or 0.18 per cent to 85,606.06 at 1.18 pm. Nifty 50 dipped by 27.70 pts or 0.11 per cent to 26,300.85, hitting a record high of 26,373.20 in early trade.
The small-cap index outperformed by 0.83 per cent, while the midcap index traded with a 0.12 per cent gain.
Sectoral moves
On the sectoral front, all indices except IT and oil & gas traded in positive territory. Defence, consumer durables and media soared 1-2.4 per cent. Defence stocks gained traction amid US raids on Venezuela.
Defence stock BEL, Nestle, Eicher Motors lead Nifty 50
Shares of Bharat Electronics, Nestle India, Eicher Motors, Maruti and Asian Paints led the Nifty 50 gainers, while HCL Tech, Infosys, Wipro, HDFC Bank and ONGC dragged the most.
Under the IT index, HCL Tech, Infosys, Wipro, Persistent Systems and Tech Mahindra declined 1-2 per cent.
Defence stocks MTAR Tech, Data Patterns, Solar Industries, BDL, BEL and Paras Defence surged 3-4 per cent.
Market breadth
Of the 3,134 stocks traded on the National Stock Exchange at the time of writing, 1,345 advanced, while a larger 1,687 stocks declined, and 102 remained unchanged, indicating that selling pressure outweighed buying interest.
Meanwhile, 126 stocks, including Ashok Leyland, AU Small Finance Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bharat Forge and Coal India, touched their 52-week highs, compared with 69 stocks, including Bharat Rasayan, hitting 52-week lows, suggesting selective strength despite overall softness. 54 stocks were locked in the upper circuit, while 57 stocks hit the lower circuit.
Among midcap stocks, Bharat Dynamics, Voltas, Union Bank of India, MFSL, Astral and Blue Star surged 3-4 per cent, while Premier Energies, Waaree Energies, M&M Financial, Tube Investments and HUDCO declined 2-5 per cent.
Smallcap stocks Ola Electric, PGEL, Cyient, Amber and Data Patterns zoomed 4-7 per cent, while Devyani International, Afcons, JBM Auto, NBCC and Gland Pharma dropped 1-3 per cent.
On the BSE, Netweb, PGEL, CSB Bank, Ola Electric and Cyient rallied 6-10 per cent, while Sapphire, Epigral, Premier Energies and M&M Financial Services depreciated 4-7 per cent.