Sensex, Nifty 50 fall for 3rd consecutive session; mid, small-caps underperform— 10 key highlights

The Indian stock market benchmarks- the Sensex and the Nifty 50- ended in the negative territory for the third consecutive session on Wednesday, December 17, on persisting concerns over the rupee's weakness, foreign capital outflow and the delayed India-US trade deal. The Sensex closed with a loss of 120 points, or 0.14%, at 84,559.65, while the Nifty 50 ended at 25,818.55, down 42 points, or 0.16%. The fall was deeper in the mid and small-cap segments; the BSE Midcap index ended 0.53% lower, while the Smallcap index fell 0.85%. The across-the-board decline dragged the overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms to ₹466 lakh crore from ₹467.64 lakh crore in the previous session, making investors lose ₹1.6 lakh crore in a single session.

Indian stock market: 10 key highlights from the day

1. Why did the Indian stock market fall for the third consecutive session?

The domestic market is struggling to come out of the negative territory on the rupee's weakness and heavy foreign capital outflow amid persisting uncertainty over an India-US trade deal.

At this juncture, the domestic market lacks fresh triggers to outweigh these headwinds. The stock market volatility may persist until the December quarter earnings start showing a healthy rebound and an India-US trade deal is announced.

"Foreign investors are pulling out funds, and emerging markets are struggling, while developed economies remain strong, showing that investors are becoming more cautious about emerging markets, Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments, noted.

"Although currency stability offers temporary relief, global uncertainty and sustained foreign selling keep upside potential limited, leaving markets skewed toward a bearish bias," said Nair.

2. Top gainers in the Nifty 50 index

Some 24 stocks ended higher in the Nifty 50 index, while 26 declined.

Shriram Finance (up 2.07%), State Bank of India (up 1.58%), and Hindalco Industries (up 1.30%) ended as the top gainers in the index.

3. Top losers in the Nifty 50 index

Max Healthcare Institute (down 3.71%), Apollo Hospitals Enterprise (down 1.98%), and Trent (down 1.66%) ended as the top losers in the index.

4. Sectoral indices today

Nifty PSU Bank jumped 1.29%, bucking the trend. Nifty IT (up 0.29%), Metal (up 0.25%), and Oil and Gas (up 0.23%) also ended higher.

On the flip side, Media (down 1.71 %), Consumer Durables (down 0.96%), Realty (down 0.84%), and FMCG (down 0.47%) closed with significant losses.

Nifty Bank slipped 0.18% while the Financial Services index fell 0.49%.

5. Most active stocks in terms of volume

Vodafone Idea (62.7 crore shares), Meesho (18.1 crore shares), and Ola Electric Mobility (14.9 crore shares) were the most active stocks in terms of volume on the NSE.

6. 12 stocks jump more than 15% on BSE despite stock market weakness

Meesho, TCI Finance, Shish Industries, Transwarranty Finance, and Apex Frozen Foods were among the 12 stocks that surged more than 15% on the BSE despite weak stock market sentiment.

7. Advance-decline ratio

Out of 4,328 stocks traded on the BSE, 1,475 advanced, while 2,694 declined. Some 159 stocks remained unchanged.

8. Over 90 stocks hit 52-week highs

Vedanta, Shriram Finance, and Hindustan Zinc were among the 94 stocks that hit their 52-week highs in intraday trade on the BSE.

9. Nearly 200 stocks hit 52-week lows

ACC, REC, PFC, Colgate Palmolive (India), Mankind Pharma, United Breweries (UBL), and Page Industries were among the 196 stocks that hit their 52-week lows on the BSE.

10. Nifty's technical outlook

According to Sudeep Shah, Head - Technical and Derivatives Research at SBI Securities, the previous swing low zone of 25,700-25,650 will act as important support for the Nifty 50.

"If the index slips below the 25,650 level, it could trigger a further correction up to the 25,500 level. On the upside, the zone of 25,950-26,000 will act as a crucial hurdle for the index. Any sustainable move above the 26,000 will lead to a pullback rally up to the 26,200 level," said Shah.

Shrikant Chouhan, the head of equity research at Kotak Securities, said that the intraday market sentiment is weak, but a fresh selloff is possible only if the level of 25,775 is breached on the downside.

Chouhan said if that happens, the market could retest the levels of 25,700-25,650. On the flip side, if the market moves above 25,920, the sentiment could improve. Above this level, the market could rise to 26,000-26,050, said Chouhan.

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