CLOSING BELL
Domestic equities languished in the red on Wednesday as the Russia-Ukraine conflict entered its 7th day today. Besides, soaring Brent crude prices (above $110 a barrel now) and feeble global cues also dented the market sentiment.
The S&P BSE Sensex plummeted over 1,200 points intra-day but recouped some of the losses after reports suggested Russia was ready to resume talks with Ukraine tonight.
The index ended 778 points, or 1.38 per cent, lower at 55,469 levels. The broader Nifty50, too, bounced back from its intra-day low of 16,479 to close at 16,606, down 188 points or 1.12 per cent.
The benchmarks were bogged down by Maruti Suzuki, Dr Reddy's Labs, Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, ICICI Bank, HDFC twins, Eicher Motors, and Sun Pharma. All these stocks were down between 3 per cent and 6 per cent.
Metal and energy-related stocks, however, helped to trim losses with Coal India, Tata Steel, Hindalco, UPL, JSW Steel, Titan, and Reliance Industries closing up in the range of 1.7 per cent to 9 per cent.
In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices ended 0.1 per cent lower each. Sectorally, the Nifty Metal index was the top gainer on the NSE today (up 4 per cent) while the Nifty Auto index slumped 3 per cent. The Nifty Bank, Financial Services, and Pharma indices dipped 2 per cent each.
Buzzing stocks
Shares of
HDFC Bank dipped 5 per cent to Rs 1,358 on the BSE in Wednesday’s intra-day trade on the back of persistent selling pressure in financial shares. The stock of private sector lender hit its lowest level since April 2021 and was close to its 52-week low of Rs 1,353.10 touched on April 12, 2021.
READ MORE Shares of
Nuvoco Vistas Corporation moved higher by 12 per cent to Rs 387 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in Wednesday's intra-day trade, extending their rally into third straight day. Since last Thursday, the stock has rallied 30 per cent after one of the promoters bought over 50,000 shares of the company via open market.
READ MORE Shares of state-owned oil exploration & production companies –
Oil Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India – rallied up to 10 per cent on the BSE in Wednesday’s intra-day trade as oil prices surged to their highest levels since 2014.
READ MORE Global markets
European stocks were uncertain on Wednesday as the geopolitical crisis between Russia and Ukraine continues. The pan-European Stoxx 600 hovered around the flatline by mid-morning after dropping 0.9 per cent at the open.
On Wall Street, futures linked to all three main indices were up around 0.6 per cent each.
Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei ended 1.7 per cent down, South Korea's Kospi gained 0.16 per cent, and Australia's ASX200 added 0.28 per cent. China's Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong's hang Seng slipped 0.13 per cent and 1.8 per cent, respectively.
 "Sensex gyrates 1,227pts, ends 779pts down; Maruti dips 6%, Coal India up 9%")
