Nifty 50 Down 2% For The Week, Indian Stocks Slide Amid Sector Losses

Indian stock markets finished lower to end the week Friday, witnessing a pullback as significant sectors faced downturns. The Nifty 50 declined by 0.56% while the benchmark BSE Sensex slipped by 0.62%, both reeling from major losses in sectors including Oil & Gas, Public Sector Undertakings, and Auto.

Despite the broader market turmoil, some companies managed to record impressive gains. UPL Ltd emerged as one of the star performers among the Nifty 50 stocks, advancing by a substantial 3.18%. Additional gains were seen with Bharti Airtel Ltd (1.62%) and Bajaj Finance Ltd (1.37%), both of which carved out their positions in green on the Nifty 50 index in the top 5 gainers on the day.

While some individual stocks celebrated gains, the day was not as kind to others, with Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (-4.99%), Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd, and Coal India Ltd (-2.85%) grappling with challenges and emerging as some of the biggest decliners on the Nifty 50.

The drag on the markets reflected more pointedly on the BSE Sensex 30, where Bharti Airtel Ltd, Bajaj Finance Ltd , and Bajaj Finserv Ltd secured the top three positions with bullish movements. However, the surge by these leading shares was not enough to stave off the pervasive downturn that afflicted Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. , NTPC Ltd , and HCL Technologies Ltd landing them amongst the unfortunate laggards in performance on the BSE Sensex 30.

Analysing the day's trading statistics, bears were visibly dominant as declining stocks outnumbered their advancing counterparts on both the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the BSE, India’s premier exchanges.

Off the back of a pretty downward day yesterday for US markets, broader participants adjust strategies in response to sectoral shifts and wider economic signals.

Closing the week out 2% down for the Nifty fifty is undoubtedly a shift from the trend seen over the past 6 months, but a retracement is healthy, and a test of the psychological level of 22000 was not completely unexpected.