Stock market today: Indian markets ended lower on Wednesday, March 26, as investors booked profits after a seven-day winning streak in the frontline indices. Additionally, a lack of clarity on the countries and sectors that may be exempt from the reciprocal tariffs set to be imposed by the Donald Trump administration on April 2 led investors to hold back on fresh buying.
All 13 major sectoral indices witnessed selling pressure, with IT, which showed some momentum during the first half of the trading session, also slipping into the red. Pharma stocks extended their losses for the second consecutive session on concerns that Trump may announce duties on drug imports.
Meanwhile, the broader markets also remained under pressure for the second straight day, with small-cap stocks facing heavy selling for another session.
Stock market today: 10 key highlights
Here are 10 key highlights of the Indian stock market today:
Nifty 50, Sensex turn red after 7-day rally
The Nifty 50 ended the session with a 0.77% decline, closing at 23,486 points and snapping its seven-day winning streak. Likewise, the Sensex ended its seven-day run of gains with a 0.93% drop, settling at 77,288 points.
Over the past seven sessions, both indices have gained over 5.5%, recovering from their February rout as foreign inflows and optimism over domestic macroeconomic factors provided some relief from India’s longest equity slump in nearly 30 years.
HDFC Bank, Infosys, and 3 other stocks contribute 56% to Nifty 50’s fall
The sharp drop in shares of HDFC Bank, Infosys, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank, and NTPC collectively accounted for 106 points, or 56%, of the Nifty 50’s 181-point decline in today’s session.
HDFC Bank emerged as the top contributor, dragging the index down by 31 points.
