The Sensex closed 555.23 points lower at 75,577.58 on Tuesday, while the Nifty50 settled at 23,635.10, down 144.05 points.
It was the second straight day of losses for both indices, following Monday’s 382-point Sensex decline tied to crude oil prices and US-Iran tensions.
SBI Life Insurance Company, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank were the top losers on the Nifty50 during Tuesday’s session.
The Nifty MidCap and Nifty SmallCap indices moved higher, up 0.21 percent and 0.17 percent respectively, diverging from the benchmark decline.
Analysts continued to point to crude oil price volatility and geopolitical uncertainty as the main drivers of the fall.
Analysts have flagged continued volatility as long as Gulf tensions and crude oil supply concerns remain unresolved, with markets likely to stay reactive to fresh developments.
Deepa Jewellers was among the new listings debuting on the exchanges around the same period, drawing separate investor attention even as the benchmark indices declined.
Tuesday marked the second straight session of losses for the Sensex, following Monday’s 382-point decline that was also attributed to crude oil prices and Gulf tensions.
SBI Life Insurance Company, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank were among the top losers on the Nifty50 index during Tuesday’s session.
The broader markets showed a different pattern than the benchmark indices, with the Nifty MidCap rising 0.21 percent and the Nifty SmallCap rising 0.17 percent even as the Sensex and Nifty fell.
Rising crude oil prices directly affect India’s economy given the country’s heavy dependence on imported oil, which widens the trade deficit and pressures the rupee when prices climb.
TCS was among the IT stocks under pressure during Tuesday’s trade, as the sector remained sensitive to signals on US interest-rate policy.
The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty are the two primary benchmark indices used to track the overall health of the Indian stock market, comprising the country’s largest listed companies by market capitalisation.
National Stock Exchange building, Mumbai, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
