Stock market ends lower as IT, auto and banking shares fall

Mumbai, Sep 24 (IANS) The Indian equity indices ended the session in negative territory on Wednesday, continuing the losing streak this week amid persistent selling in IT stocks and profit booking in the auto, banking and financial services sectors.

Sensex ended the session at 81,715.63, down 386.47 points or 0.47 per cent. The 30-share index opened slightly lower at 81,917.56 against the last session's closing of 82,102.10. The index slipped further amid selling across major sectors to hit an intra-day low at 81,607.84.

Nifty closed at 25,056.90, down 112.60 points or 0.45 per cent.

"Profit booking has been observed in Indian markets post-GST reforms, as investors recalibrate valuations and Q2 earnings expectations. IT stocks underperformed due to H-1B fee hikes, while US trade rhetoric amid ongoing trade negotiations and weak global cues are prompting cautious investor sentiment," analysts said.

India’s relatively high valuations, coupled with moderation in earnings growth, continue to lead FIIs to trim their positions. That said, structural reforms and domestic growth drivers are keeping the underlying trend constructive, they added.

From the Sensex basket, Tata Motors, BEL, Ultratech Cement, Tech Mahindra, Mahindra and Mahindra, TCS, Axis Bank, Titan, Kotak Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Bajaj FinServ, and Eternal ended the session lower. While PowerGrid, Hindustan Unilever, NTPC, HCL Tech, Maruti, L&T and Asian Paint settled in green.

The majority of sectoral indices closed in negative territory amid persistent selling. Nifty Auto fell 314 points or 1.15 per cent, Nifty IT slipped 254 points or 0.72 per cent, Nifty Bank fell 388 points or 0.70 per cent, and Nifty Fin Services ended the session 171 points or 0.64 per cent lower.

Broader indices followed suit as well. Nifty Next 50 dragged 835 points or 1.20 per cent, Nifty 100 dipped 149 points or 0.58 per cent, Nifty Midcap 100 closed 572 points or 0.98 per cent lower, and Nifty Small Cap 100 fell 122 points or 0.67 per cent.

--IANS

aps/na