New Delhi, September 19 (HS): Domestic equity markets came under pressure in early trade on Friday as benchmark indices opened lower and extended losses due to sustained selling. Both the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty started the session with marginal declines, but selling pressure intensified soon after, pushing the indices deeper into the red. Despite intermittent attempts by buyers to lift sentiment, the selling outweighed demand, keeping benchmarks under pressure.

By 10:00 a.m., the Sensex was down 385.02 points, or 0.46%, trading at 82,628.94, while the Nifty dropped 109 points, or 0.43%, to trade at 25,314.60.

Gainers and Losers

Among frontline stocks, Shriram Finance, Jio Financial Services, SBI Life Insurance, Hero MotoCorp, and Maruti Suzuki gained between 1.60% and 0.23%. On the downside, Tata Consumer Products, TCS, ICICI Bank, Titan Company, and Hindalco Industries slipped in the range of 0.95% to 0.59%.

Market breadth remained divided, with 2,051 actively traded stocks on the exchanges. Of these, 1,223 were in positive territory, while 828 traded in the red. Within the 30-share Sensex basket, 11 stocks advanced, while 19 declined. Similarly, of the 50 Nifty components, 17 were in the green and 33 traded lower.

Market Opening Trends

The Sensex had opened at 82,946.04, lower by 67.92 points compared to Thursday’s close at 83,013.96. However, within minutes of opening, selling pressure dragged the index further down. The Nifty too slipped at the open, starting at 25,410.20, down 13.40 points, before extending losses.

On Thursday, markets had ended on a positive note, with the Sensex rising 320.25 points (0.39%) to settle at 83,013.96, while the Nifty closed 93.35 points (0.37%) higher at 25,423.60.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar