Stock market today: Frontline indices, the Sensex and the Nifty 50, ended slightly lower on Wednesday, 27 May, extending losses for the second consecutive session, largely due to the poor show of select heavyweights, including HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, as the mid and small-cap segments continued their outperformance.
The closed 142 points, or 0.19%, lower at 75,867.80, while the settled with a nominal loss of 7 points, or 0.03%, at 23,907.15.
On the other hand, the BSE 150 Midcap index jumped 0.83%, while the BSE 250 Smallcap index rose by 0.49%.
Benchmarks remained rangebound today, too, as sentiment remained cautious amid no significant developments on the peace deal front. A more than 3% fall in Brent Crude prices, however, prevented a sharp selloff. Meanwhile, the Indian rupee ended 1 paise up at 95.69 per dollar.
ended as the top drag on the Sensex. Shares of the banking heavyweight ended 2.63% lower at ₹758.50 amid reports of an internal investigation into interest payments worth ₹45 crore made to a state firm.
Reliance, ICICI Bank, Infosys, and ITC also contributed to the decline in the Sensex.
The recent outperformance in the mid and small-cap segments is largely due to the better-than-expected Q4 results in the mid-cap segment.
“Main indices remain range‑bound, while midcaps have entered a new zone supported by recovering domestic inflows that are offsetting FII selling. This shift reflects expectations of an earnings and valuation reset as prospects for US–Iran peace improve,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments.
“Equity markets in India closed on the weaker side on a highly volatile day Wednesday as cautious trading continued amid a mix of global signals, profit-taking from rallies seen lately,” Vikram Kasat, Head Advisory, PL Capital, observed.
“Underperformance in IT, FMCG and other blue-chip shares dampened the market, while buying in auto, PSU and metals sectors helped lift market sentiment. Midcap and small-cap stocks showed resistance amid selective buying activity,” said Kasat.
While the benchmarks ended lower, investors earned about ₹2 lakh crore in a single session, thanks to the gains in the broader markets. The overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms rose to nearly ₹471 lakh crore from nearly ₹469 lakh crore in the previous session.
Bank Nifty fell 0.43%, while the Financial Services index declined 0.69%. On the other hand, Nifty Media (up 3.05%), Metal (up 1.67%), and Auto (up 1.45%) posted solid gains.
Nifty 50 technical view
Shrikant Chouhan, the head of equity research at Kotak Securities, believes that the short-term market texture is positive, but a fresh uptrend rally is possible only after the dismissal of 24,000.
“After a 24,000 breakout, the market could move up to 24,200-24,250. For the Nifty, below the 20-day SMA (simple moving average) or 23,850, selling pressure is likely to accelerate. Below this level, the market could retest the 50-day SMA or 23,700-23,650,” said Chouhan.
Sudeep Shah, the head of technical and derivatives research at SBI Securities, said the immediate resistance for Nifty is placed in the 24,030-24,050 zone.
Shah believes any sustainable move above this zone could result in Nifty extending its pullback towards 24,200, followed by 24,350 in the short term.
On the downside, the immediate support for Nifty is placed in the 23,720-23,700 zone, said Shah.
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