Nifty Ends 122 Lower; Autos, Banks Lead Declines
Benchmark indices slumped in trade as global cues were weak, particularly from Europe, where investors continued to worry over a second wave of coronavirus.
Most of the European markets were seeing sharp cuts of almost 2 per cent, when Indian markets closed. The Nifty ended the day lower by 122 points at 11,78 points, dragged down by auto and banking stocks. The Sensex ended the day almost lower by 430 points.
Eicher Motors lost as much as 7 per cent in trade, while other auto stocks that saw sharp declines included Tata Motors.
Banking stocks too saw sharp declines with Axis Bank, SBI and ICICI Bank among the major losers in trade. Yes Bank ended the day at the lower end of the circuit filter dropping 5 per cent in trade. Ashok Leyland was among the few stocks from the auto pack that managed to hold steady.
Stocks from the Nifty that gained ground in trade were JSW Steel, Coal India and Sun Pharma. Shares in Indian Bank fell even as the profit of the bank was flat at Rs 369.3 crores. Shares in Ashoka Buildcon surged 8 per cent and was among the top gainers from the smallcap index.
Meanwhile, the rupee ended the day marginally lower at 74.91 to the dollar.