Mumbai, July 18 (IANS) The Indian stock market ended in negative territory on Friday following selling in banking stocks and the broader market, after subdued Q1 earnings in the finance and IT sectors.

Persistence FII outflows due to trade deal concerns have also played a role in dragging down markets.

Sensex ended the session at 81,757.73, down 501.51 points or 0.61 per cent against last day’s closing of 82,259.24. The 30-share index started the session in the negative territory at 82,193.62 and dragged down further to hit an intra-day low at 81,608.13 amid selling pressure in banking heavyweights like Axis Bank and HDFC Bank, and Kotak Bank.

Nifty settled at 24,968.40, down 143.05 points or 0.57 per cent.

“A broad-based sell-off was observed in the national market amidst a disappointing initial set of earnings from the finance and IT sectors,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited.

“Elevated valuations in large-cap stocks, coupled with significant net short positions held by FIIs, have contributed to a cautious sentiment among investors,” he added.

From the Sensex basket, Axis Bank, BEL, Kotak Bank, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, Titan, Eternal, Tech Mahindra, and Asian Paints were the biggest losers. Bajaj Finance, Tata Steel, ICICI, Bank HCL settled in positive territory.

Meanwhile, 33 stocks declined and 17 advanced from the Nifty50.

All broader indices concluded the session in red, amid selling pressure. Nifty Next 50 fell 486 points, Nifty Midcap 100 declined 414 points, and Nifty Smallcap 100 dropped 157 points.

Sectoral indices followed suit as well, with Nifty Bank plunging nearly 1 per cent to 545 points, Nifty FMCG falling 336 points, and Nifty Fin Services was down 253 points. At the same time, Nifty IT settled flat.

Rupee trades lower by 0.07 per cent as crude prices continue their upward rally in recent sessions, adding pressure on the domestic currency.

Weak sentiment in capital markets further weighed on the rupee, while positive cues from the dollar index kept it under sustained pressure, said experts.

Moreover, additional tariff threats are also casting a shadow on India over its trade relationship with Russia.

Participants are advised to avoid aggressive directional trades and adopt a hedged approach, with a focus on stock selection based on earnings performance, said analysts.

–IANS

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