Benchmark stock market indices closed lower on Monday after initially trading flat for most of the day but experienced a selloff in the later hours, particularly in metal, consumer durables, and real estate stocks.
The S&P BSE Sensex declined by 331.21 points to finish at 84,900.71, while the NSE Nifty50 dropped 108.65 points to close at 25,959.50.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments Limited, noted that the market ended with a decline in the last half-hour following a range-bound positive session. This was influenced by Monday’s expiry, as the Nifty50 indices failed to sustain above the crucial 26,000 mark.
Nair mentioned that investor sentiment was cautious due to uncertainties surrounding events like the delay in finalizing the interim US-India trade deal. Despite this, there was some selective buying in IT stocks providing a slight boost. Additionally, global markets remained positive, driven by expectations of a December Fed rate cut due to potential risks in U.S. employment data.
Among the top gainers were Tech Mahindra, rising by 2.43%, followed by Asian Paints (+0.46%), HCLTech (+0.35%), Infosys (+0.31%), and Adani Ports (+0.18%).
However, the market sentiment weakened as major stocks experienced significant declines. The top losers included BEL (-2.98%), Tata Steel (-1.61%), Mahindra & Mahindra (-1.59%), UltraTech Cement (-1.18%), and Trent (-1.16%).
Ajit Mishra, SVP of Research at Religare Broking Ltd, attributed the subdued performance to risk aversion amid global uncertainties and continuous FII selling, overshadowing domestic resilience.
Mishra anticipated elevated volatility with the monthly expiry approaching and expected the Nifty to fluctuate within the 25,800–26,100 range. He advised participants to adopt a stock-specific strategy and utilize market dips or consolidation phases to gradually accumulate quality stocks.