Stock market today: Key stock indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower for the seventh consecutive day on Thursday, following late selling pressure in select IT and banking stocks alongside foreign fund outflows. The BSE Sensex declined by 32.11 points or 0.04 per cent to close at 76,138.97. The index remained positive for most of the trading session, fluctuating 751.1 points between its peak of 76,764.53 and trough of 76,013.43.
The NSE Nifty decreased by 13.85 points or 0.06 per cent to 23,031.40.
Among the 30 prominent companies, Adani Ports, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, State Bank of India, Nestle and Titan were amongst the declining stocks.
Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Zomato emerged as the leading gainers.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 4,969.30 crore on Wednesday, as per exchange data.
“Despite initial market optimism driven by easing domestic inflation data, the rally lost momentum amid uncertain global cues and subdued corporate earnings. Furthermore, a surge in Chinese technology stocks, fuelled by heightened interest in artificial intelligence, redirected FIIs in pursuit of more attractive returns.
“Market participants are now closely monitoring the outcome of the Trump-Modi discussions for any trade and tariff concessions for a potential pullback rally,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.
Retail inflation decreased to a five-month low of 4.31 per cent in January, primarily due to reduced prices of vegetables, eggs, and pulses.
In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo ended positively whilst Shanghai and Hong Kong finished lower.
European markets showed mixed performance. American markets largely declined on Wednesday.
International oil benchmark Brent crude fell 0.94 per cent to USD 74.47 per barrel.
The BSE Sensex, which had dropped over 900 points during Wednesday’s trading, finished at 76,171.08, lower by 122.52 points or 0.16 per cent. The Nifty fell 26.55 points or 0.12 per cent to 23,045.25, recording its sixth consecutive day of decline.