Market Wrap: Sensex, Nifty fall for 2nd consecutive session; investors lose nearly ₹2.5 lakh crore

Indian equities remained under pressure for the second consecutive session on November 10 as investors remained cautious ahead of the key US inflation numbers.

Analysts expect the October inflation prints of the US to show signs of moderation; a negative surprise on this front may trigger a sharp selloff in the market.

Following weak global cues, Sensex opened 509 points lower at 60,524.27 against the previous close of 61,033.55 and hit an intraday low of 60,425.47, falling 608 points.

The index eventually closed with a loss of 420 points, or 0.69%, at 60,613.70. Nifty50 settled at 18,028.20, down 129 points, or 0.71%.

Mid and smallcaps suffered more. The BSE Midcap index closed with a loss of 1.02% while the Smallcap index fell 1.05%, underperforming the benchmark Sensex.

The overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms dropped to ₹281.6 lakh crore from ₹284 lakh crore in the previous session, making investors poorer by ₹2.4 lakh crore in a single session.

"Following sluggish global markets, the cautious mood persisted in the domestic market. Losses on Dalal Street were led by profit booking in auto and PSU banks while selling in mid and smallcaps followed the trend. Investors around the globe are awaiting US inflation data, which is expected to slow for the fourth month, which can have a positive lead," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Shares of Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Titan, Mahindra & Mahindra and Bajaj Finance ended as the top laggards in the Sensex index.

Only six stocks - HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Dr Reddy's Labs, Hindustan Unilever and HDFC - ended in the green in the Sensex index.

The BSE Auto index fell more than 2%, emerging as the top loser among the sectoral indices. Consumer Durables, Consumer Discretionary and Commodities packs fell more than a percent each.

Crude oil prices remained subdued; benchmark Brent Crude traded near the $92 per barrel mark. The rupee fell 38 paise to close at 81.81 per dollar.

Technical view by experts

Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities, believes that as long as the Nifty trades below 18100, the weakness is likely to continue and below this level, the index could slip to 17,900-17,850.

"The dismissal of 18,100 could push the index up to 18,150-18,175. Contra traders can take a contra bet near 17,850 with a strict support stop loss at 17,800," said Chouhan.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities pointed bulls managed to hold the 18,000 mark on a closing basis. The trend may remain sideways as long as it remains above 18,000. On the higher end, 18,300 will continue to act as a crucial resistance, said De.

Key market data

Disclaimer: The views and recommendations given in this article are those of individual analysts. These do not represent the views of MintGenie.