Markets decline in early trade dragged by bank stocks, weak Asian peers

Mumbai: Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty fell in early trade on Wednesday dragged down by bank stocks and weak trends in Asian markets.

The BSE Sensex declined 366.53 points to 80,002.50 in early trade. The NSE Nifty dropped 129.25 points to 24,337.60.

From the 30-share Sensex pack, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India, HCL Technologies and Bharti Airtel were among the laggards.

In contrast, Maruti, Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank and Larsen & Toubro defied broader market trend and were trading in the positive territory.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Tuesday, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 548.69 crore, according to exchange data.

"In the near term the market will be influenced by two factors - one positive and the other negative. The positive is the sharp decline in FII selling to just Rs 548 crore on Tuesday. This is an indication that the FII tactical trade of ‘Sell India, Buy China’ is coming to an end.

"With more Domestic Institutional Investors (DII) and retail money coming to the market and FII selling tapering off, the market may get a near-term boost, aided by the festive mood. But the uptrend is unlikely to sustain since the Q2 earnings numbers indicate softness in earnings for FY25," V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Shanghai and Hong Kong traded lower, while Tokyo quoted in the positive territory.

The US markets ended on a mixed note on Tuesday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.48 per cent to USD 71.46 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark climbed 363.99 points or 0.45 per cent to settle at 80,369.03 on Tuesday. The Nifty rose 127.70 points or 0.52 per cent to 24,466.85.