Markets lose steam ahead of holiday season

The domestic share market indices ended marginally lower in the volatile session on Tuesday. At close, the Sensex was down 67.30 points or 0.09 percent at 78,472.87, and the Nifty was down 25.80 points or 0.11 percent at 23,727.65. About 1907 shares advanced, 1926 shares declined, and 94 shares unchanged.
Tata Motors, Adani Enterprises, Eicher Motors, BPCL and ITC were the top gainers on the Nifty while losers included Power Grid Corp, JSW Steel, SBI Life Insurance, Titan Company and SBI.On the sectoral front,buying was seen in the auto, FMCG, oil & gas, while selling was seen in the IT, media, metal, PSU Bank.The BSE midcap index ended on flat note, while smallcap index was up 0.3 percent.
Rupee Close
On 24 Dec'24,the Indian rupee extended its slide for the second straight session and depreciated 9 paise to settle at a fresh all-time low of 85.20  against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday . The rupee was dragged by a strong greenback against major crosses overseas and subdued domestic equities.According to analysts, increased demand for the dollar due to month-end payment obligations and the fear of an aggressive import tariff by the Donald Trump administration in the U.S. strengthened the greenback.
Trading Guide:
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services reportedly quoted as saying,the domestic market concluded flat ahead of the holiday, with metal and power stocks dragging performance while FMCG and auto sectors gained from recent corrections. The near-term market trajectory hinges on the outcome of Q3 results and the Union budget, but caution prevails due to a strong dollar, high bond yields, and concerns over rate cuts. The INR hitting an all-time low, further evoked the caution.
Market experts have recommended five shares to buy- Coromandel International Ltd , Zen Technologies Ltd , HDFC Bank Ltd , Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd and Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (MCX).

(Business Correspondent)