Stock market today: Frontline indices, the Sensex and the Nifty 50, snapped their two-day winning run on Friday, 15 May, due to profit booking amid weak global cues, a sharp jump in crude oil prices, and the rupee’s fall to a fresh record low against the US dollar.
The fell 161 points, or 0.21%, to end at 75,237.99, while the settled at 23,643.50, down 46 points, or 0.19%.
Infosys, Tech Mahindra, and Power Grid ended as the top gainers in the Sensex index, while Tata Steel, Eternal, and Reliance Industries ended as the top losers in the index.
The selloff was broad-based, as even the mid and small-cap segments ended in the negative. The BSE 150 Midcap index fell 0.48%, while the BSE 250 Smallcap index declined 0.37%.
Among the sectoral indices on the BSE, Metal, Oil and Gas, PSU Bank, Realty, Energy, and Commodities fell more than 1% each. BSE IT rose more than 1%.
Investors lost more than ₹2 lakh crore in a single session as the overall market capitalisation of the firms listed on the BSE dropped to ₹460.5 lakh crore from nearly ₹463 lakh crore in the previous session.
For the week, the Sensex dropped 2.7%, while the Nifty 50 dropped 2.2%, snapping their two-week winning run.
Why did the stock market fall today?
The Indian stock market ended lower due to profit booking amid the fall below the 96 per dollar mark for the first time, amid a 3% jump in crude oil prices.
Brent Crude traded above $108 per barrel, while the Indian rupee, after falling below 96 per dollar, ended 30 paise lower at a record low of 95.94 per US dollar.
Market sentiment remained weak as US President two-day visit to Beijing concluded without any major breakthroughs on trade or firm support from China to end the West Asia conflict.
“Investors have turned cautious post the recent relief rally, with rising bond yields, a weaker rupee, and fresh fuel price hikes reviving inflation concerns. Favourable valuations and a solid Q4 earnings print are cushioning the downside,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments.
“The focus has shifted to potential fiscal and monetary measures to defend the rupee and stabilise the balance of payment (BoP). Globally, surging yields have paused the AI-led rally. Near-term direction is likely to be driven by geopolitical developments,” said Nair.
Nifty 50 technical outlook
Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities, highlighted that the Nifty 50 has been forming lower tops on the daily chart, indicating a bearish setup.
The index is also facing strong resistance at the 20 EMA on the daily timeframe and the 50 EMA on the weekly timeframe.
Besides, India VIX has surged nearly 9% from the day’s low following the breakout in Brent crude prices. The RSI remains in a bearish crossover and continues to decline, indicating weak momentum, De pointed out.
“In the near term, the index may witness renewed selling pressure once Nifty falls below 23,500. On the downside, a breach below 23,500 could drag the index towards 23,150 and possibly lower levels. On the upside, 23,800 is expected to continue acting as a key short-term point of polarity,” said De.
According to Sudeep Shah, the head of technical and derivatives research at SBI Securities, the immediate support for Nifty is placed in the 23,500-23,450 zone.
“Any sustainable move below this zone could result in Nifty extending its weakness towards 23,300, followed by 23,150 in the short term. On the upside, the immediate resistance for Nifty is placed in the 23,800-23,850 zone,” said Shah.
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