Stock markets end lower on foreign fund outflows, selling in blue-chips
Market sentiment was also sluggish due to a weak start to the earnings season and continued flight of foreign capital from Indian markets, according to traders
Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Tuesday after a day's breather, as investors pared exposure to index majors Reliance Industries, L&T and Bharti Airtel amid global tariff-related concerns.
Market sentiment was also sluggish due to a weak start to the earnings season and continued flight of foreign capital from Indian markets, according to traders.
In a volatile trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 250.48 points, or 0.30 per cent, to settle at 83,627.69. During the day, it declined 615.38 points, or 0.73 per cent, to 83,262.79.
The 50-share NSE Nifty edged lower by 57.95 points or 0.22 per cent to 25,732.30.
The session began on a negative note following disappointing results from IT major TCS and drifted lower for most of the session, though a rebound in the final hour trimmed some losses.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Trent, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, InterGlobe Aviation, Maruti, ITC, Adani Ports and Bharat Electronics were among the biggest laggards.
In contrast, Eternal, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra, State Bank of India and Tata Consultancy Services were among the gainers.
The country's largest IT services exporter TCS on Monday reported a 13.91 per cent drop in December quarter profit at Rs 10,657 crore, majorly on a one-time impact of new labour codes.
Meanwhile, retail inflation rose to a three-month high of 1.33 per cent in December, mainly due to higher prices of food items, but remained below the Reserve Bank of India's lower tolerance level.
Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 3,638.40 crore on Monday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth Rs 5,839.32 crore, according to exchange data.
