New Delhi, March 12 (H.S.): On Wednesday, the domestic stock market experienced fluctuations but ultimately closed slightly lower. The trading day commenced positively, with buying support leading to significant gains in both the Sensex and Nifty indices. However, this momentum was short-lived, as selling pressure quickly set in, causing a notable drop. During the second session, buyers re-entered the market, facilitating a recovery to some extent. At the close, the Sensex was down by 0.10% and the Nifty by 0.12%.

The sectors that faced the most selling pressure included IT, Realty, Banking, and Metal, while the Capital Goods, Public Sector Enterprise, and Tech indices also ended on a weaker note. Conversely, sectors such as Oil and Gas, Healthcare, FMCG, Consumer Durables, and Automobiles continued to attract buying interest. The broader market struggled with the BSE Midcap index declining by 0.57%, and the Smallcap index by 0.48%. Overall, investors lost approximately ₹1.5 lakh crore in wealth due to market weakness, with the market capitalization of BSE-listed companies falling from ₹394.25 lakh crore to ₹392.84 lakh crore.

A total of 4,122 shares were traded on the BSE, where 1,494 shares rose, while 2,491 closed lower. The NSE tracked 2,621 shares, with 885 gaining and 1,736 losing value. From the Sensex’s 30 stocks, 12 finished higher and 18 lower, while in the Nifty, 19 shares were in the green and 31 in the red.

The BSE’s Sensex opened at 74,270.81 points, rising to 74,392.15 points before succumbing to selling that led to a decline of over 790 points. It subsequently recovered to close at 74,029.76, down by 72.56 points. The Nifty started at 22,536.35 points, hitting 22,577.40 points before dropping sharply, ending at 22,470.50, a loss of 27.40 points. Among notable market movers, IndusInd Bank rose by 4.38%, while Infosys saw a decline of 4.26%.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar