Sensex falls 7-month low, Nifty below 23,050 amid volatility

The Nifty and Sensex tumbled to their lowest levels in seven months on Tuesday, as an intensified sell-off amid extreme volatility rocked the markets. Banking stocks, across both public and private sectors, and a sharp fall in auto stocks dragged the indices lower.Small and midcap stocks suffered deeper losses compared to large-caps, compounding the overall weakness, noted experts. Exchange figures showed a staggering Rs 7 lakh crore in market capitalisation wiped out by the end of the day, according to information.At close, the Sensex was down 1,235.08 points or 1.60 percent at 75,838.36, and the Nifty was down 320.10 points or 1.37 percent at 23,024.65. About 1,148 shares advanced, 2,656 shares declined, and 112 shares unchanged.
Apollo Hospitals, BPCL, Tata Consumer, JSW Steel, Shriram Finance were the top gainers on the Nifty,while losers included Trent, Adani Ports, NTPC, ICICI Bank, SBI.On the sectoral front,all the sectoral indices ended in the red with Consumer Durables and realty indices plunged 4 percent each, while bank, power, telecom, capital goods down 2 percent each.BSE Midcap and smallcap indices shed 2 percent each.
Rupee Close:
On 21 Jan'25,the Indian rupee pared initial gains and settled for the day lower by 14 paise to 86.59  against U.S. dollar on Tuesday, tracking heavy sell-off in the domestic equity market and a recovery in the U.S. dollar index. Forex traders reportedly stated the dollar weakened from its 109 levels but clawed back to 108.66 as Donald Trump declared tariffs against Canada and Mexico in the near future but stopped short of declaring any tariffs against China.
Trading Guide:
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services reportedly quoted as saying,domestic markets experienced a significant decline today, with heightened volatility, followed by Trump's announcement of trade tariffs on neighbouring countries on his inauguration day, adding uncertainty into global markets. The weak recovery in the ongoing Q3 earnings, coupled with a depreciating INR, are likely to prompt further outflows from FIIs.Mid and small-cap stocks underperformed compared to the main indices. The realty sector was hit the hardest due to weak pre-result updates, while banks suffered due to rising asset quality stress. Additionally, the expectation of an interest rate hike by BoJ is dampening market sentiment.
Market experts have recommended five shares to buy -Stove Kraft, Tanfac Industries, PB Fintech (Policy Bazaar), Canara Bank and Indus Towers.

(Business Correspondent)