The benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty extended losses on Tuesday as investors booked profits in select blue-chip stocks and foreign fund outflows weighed on sentiment.
The Sensex settled 376.27 points or 0.44 percent lower at 85,063.34, while the broader Nifty slipped to 26,175.60, down 74.70 points or 0.28 percent.
Trent, Reliance Industries and Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles were among the major laggards in the Nifty50 pack, declining up to 8 percent, while Hindalco Industries and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise were among the top gainers, rising up to 4 percent. Market breadth was negative as about 1561 shares advanced, 1774 shares declined and 182 shares unchanged.
Key factors behind market decline
Profit booking in heavyweight stocks: HDFC Bank, the largest stock on the benchmark indices, fell about 2 percent. The stock has declined over 4 percent in the past two sessions amid profit booking following the lender’s provisional business updates for the third quarter of FY26.
India’s top private sector lender posted 11.9 percent year-on-year (YoY) loan growth for the quarter ended December, while deposits increased 11.5 percent. Analysts at Nomura said slower deposit growth limited the increase in lending this quarter as the credit-deposit (CD) ratio, which measures loans given as a percentage of deposits, hit nearly 100 percent. The report added that the bank needs strong deposit inflows to accelerate loan growth going forward.
Geopolitical tensions: Market sentiment was also impacted by rising geopolitical tensions following the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Dr V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said heightened uncertainty called for caution. “Heightened uncertainty triggered by unprecedented geopolitical events demands a cautious approach to investment supported by higher cash position to exploit sudden movements in the market,” he said.
