Indian markets slipped marginally on Monday, with traders adopting a guarded stance ahead of this week’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting of the Reserve Bank of India and booking profits in a few major stocks.
The Sensex ended the day at 85,641.90, a fall of 64.77 points or 0.08 per cent.
The benchmark began the session with a healthy gap-up at 86,065.92 compared to Friday’s close of 85,706.67, but the early momentum faded as caution took hold.
Similarly, the Nifty closed at 26,175.75, lower by 27.20 points or 0.10 per cent.
“After reaching a new high, the market moved into a range-bound phase as expectations of an RBI rate cut in December faded following better-than-expected Q2 GDP growth and a sharp depreciation of the rupee,” the market experts observed.
Muted GST collections for November, affected by lower tax rates, further dampened investor mood.
The auto sector, however, bucked the trend.
Analysts attributed the index’s strength to robust November sales, helped by GST adjustments, softer inflation, and buoyant demand during the wedding season.
Within the Sensex pack, several heavyweights, Bajaj Finance, Sun Pharma, Trent, Mahindra & Mahindra, SBI, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finserv, HDFC Bank and Axis Bank, finished in the red.
Gains were recorded in Tata Motors PV, Maruti Suzuki, BEL, Kotak Bank, Adani Ports, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Eternal and NTPC.
Sectoral trends reflected mixed sentiment.
Nifty FMCG shed 95 points or 0.17 per cent, Nifty Bank eased 71 points or 0.12 per cent, and Nifty Financial Services declined 75 points or 0.27 per cent.
On the positive side, Nifty Auto climbed 218.40 points or 0.25 per cent, while Nifty IT rose 144 points or 0.39 per cent.
Broader markets mirrored the overall cautious outlook.
While Nifty 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 finished largely unchanged, Nifty Smallcap 100 managed to advance 45 points or 0.25 per cent.
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