The Indian stock market ended marginally lower on Thursday after a highly volatile session.
Domestic indices averted a sharp crash following the US tariff imposition on India. Buying interest in FMCG stocks provided key support during the session.
Sensex closed at 81,185.58, down 296.28 points or 0.36 per cent.
The 30-share index opened sharply lower at 80,695.50, compared to the previous close of 81,481.86. It showed resilience by erasing early losses and turning green in the afternoon.
The index hit an intraday high of 81,803.27 amid strong buying in consumer stocks. However, it lost momentum during the closing hour, pressured by monthly derivatives expiry.
Nifty settled at 24,768.35, shedding 86.70 points or 0.35 per cent.
Analysts attributed the overall performance to the Indian stock market’s underlying resilience.
Tata Steel, Sun Pharma, NTPC, Reliance, Asian Paints, L&T, and Titan were the top laggards on the Sensex. In contrast, Hindustan Unilever, Eternal, ITC, and Kotak Mahindra Bank closed in green territory.
Broader markets faced heavy selling pressure. Nifty 100 dropped 95 points or 0.38 per cent. Nifty Midcap 100 fell 541 points or 0.93 per cent. Nifty Smallcap 100 declined 190 points or 1.05 per cent.
Nifty FMCG surged 791 points or 1.44 per cent, boosted by strong buying, especially in Hindustan Unilever after its decent Q1 earnings report.
Other sectoral indices ended in red. Nifty Auto fell 89 points, Nifty IT slipped 180 points, and Nifty Bank dropped 188 points.
Despite sharp swings, the Indian stock market managed to stage a partial recovery. However, it closed with minor losses due to expiry-linked volatility.
“Investors gravitated toward domestically oriented, non-discretionary players, especially FMCG, which offered attractive valuations, demand outlook and relative insulation from tariff risks,” analysts noted.
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