Sensex ends marginally lower as investors remain cautious amid geo-political tensions

Mumbai, April 30 (IANS) Stock-specific trading activity continued to dominate the Indian stock market for the second consecutive session on Wednesday, as both the benchmark indices remained in a narrow range.

Investors showed caution ahead of the trading holiday on Thursday (May 1) for Maharashtra Day, leading to subdued trading activity.

The Sensex opened higher by around 80 points at 80,371 but spent most of the day consolidating within a tight range. In the final 30 minutes of trading, the index surged to a high of 80,526, up by 237 points.

However, it quickly gave up these gains and dropped sharply to a low of 79,879, a 647-point decline from its intra-day high. The Sensex eventually closed at 80,024, down by 46 points.

The Nifty index experienced a similar pattern, moving in a range of nearly 200 points. It reached a high of 24,396 before dipping to a low of 24,199. The Nifty closed with a negligible loss of two points at 24,334.

“The Nifty continues to consolidate within a narrow range as traders preferred to remain on the sidelines ahead of the holiday,” said Rupak De of LKP Securities.

Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv were among the biggest losers on the Sensex, both dropping over 5 per cent after reporting their Q4 results.

Analysts noted that the future growth outlook for Bajaj Finance did not inspire confidence. Other notable decliners included Tata Motors and SBI, both shedding around 3 per cent.

UltraTech Cement, Tata Steel, and Asian Paints also saw significant losses on the 30-share index.

On the positive side, Maruti Suzuki India saw a strong rally, gaining more than 3 per cent. Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma, and Power Grid Corporation also posted gains of 1-2 per cent.

The broader market also ended in the red, with the BSE MidCap index falling 1 per cent, while the SmallCap index plunged 2 per cent.

Sector-wise, the BSE Power and Capital Goods indices both fell by over 1 per cent, while the Realty index gained more than 1 per cent.

“The weakening US dollar and India’s economic resilience have made the country attractive to global investors,” said V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

“That said, investors should tread cautiously. After a rewarding rally, some stocks have surged significantly. It’s a good time to book partial profits and raise cash levels in the portfolio,” he added.

--IANS

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