Nifty, Sensex Recover from Day's Low Amid Election Anxiety: Midday Market Update

Indian benchmarks were trading off day's low during midday on Monday, The indices declined likely due to selling by foreign investors due to election uncertainty and caution about the interest rate outlook.

As of 12:53 p.m., the NSE Nifty 50 was 50.76 points, or 0.23%, lower at 22,004.45, and the S&P BSE Sensex fell 205.23 points, or 0.28%, to 72,459.24.

Intraday, the NSE Nifty 50 declined 1.06%, or 234.15 points, to 21,821.05, and the S&P BSE Sensex fell 1.10%, or 798.46 points, to 71,866.01.

"Continued selling by foreign portfolio investors in recent sessions due to poll jitters and caution ahead of domestic inflation data due this week may also keep investors nervous," said Avdhut Bagkar, technical and derivatives analyst at StoxBox.

Market participants remained on the sidelines, awaiting US inflation data to gauge the likelihood of interest rate cuts this year, Bagkar said.  Asian markets made a cautious start on Monday in a week where inflation figures could make or break hopes for earlier U.S. rate cuts, while Chinese activity data will test optimism about a sustained recovery. 

HDFC Bank Ltd., Asian Paints Ltd., Cipla Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. were adding to the Nifty

Tata Motors Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Axis Bank Ltd., and State Bank of India weighed on the index.

On NSE, nine sectors declined and three advanced. The NSE Nifty Auto index fell the most among peers, and the NSE Nifty Pharma was the best performing sector.

Broader markets were trading lower on BSE. The S&P BSE Midcap was 0.72% lower and the S&P BSE Smallcap was 0.61% down.

On BSE, 14 sectors declined and six advanced. The S&P BSE Auto was the worst performing sector, and the S&P BSE Capital Goods was the best performing sector.

Market breadth was skewed in favour of the buyers. Around 2,479 stocks rose, 1,286 stocks declined, and 156 stocks remained unchanged on BSE.