Sensex, Nifty end lower as geopolitical tensions rise

Mumbai, April 25 (IANS) The benchmark equity indices saw intense selling pressure on Friday amid escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, following the barbaric terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.

Sensex started the day on a positive note, reaching an early high of 80,131. However, the market quickly turned negative, dropping sharply to a low of 78,606, a loss of 1,525 points, as reports emerged of a ceasefire violation at the India-Pakistan border.

The index managed to recover some of the losses but still ended the day 589 points lower, closing at 79,213 -- a decline of 0.7 per cent.

Similarly, the Nifty index rose to a high of 24,365 before plunging to its intra-day low of 23,848, a drop of 517 points. The Nifty ended 207 points lower, settling at 24,039, a decrease of 0.9 per cent.

“Rising geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan continued to weigh heavily on investor sentiment, prompting a cautious start for Indian equities,” said Sundar Kewat of Ashika Institutional Equity.

Despite the sharp decline, the benchmark indices closed the week on a positive note. The Sensex gained 660 points, and the Nifty added 187 points over the course of the week.

Among the Sensex stocks, Axis Bank was the biggest loser, following the announcement of its Q4 results.

Other major losers included Zomato, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid Corporation, Bajaj Finance, NTPC, Tata Motors, and SBI, all of which saw declines of 2-3 per cent.

On the flip side, stocks like TCS, Tech Mahindra, UltraTech Cement, and Infosys managed to close with notable gains.

The broader market was also hit hard, with both the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices falling more than 2 per cent each.

In terms of sectoral performance, the BSE Realty, Healthcare and Power indices experienced sharp declines, each falling up to 3 per cent.

Other sectors such as Auto, Capital Goods, Consumer Durables, and Metal saw declines of around 2 per cent each.

The Bankex and FMCG indices also ended the day in the red, down by about 1 per cent.

Rupak De from LKP Securities said that Nifty has slipped after a consolidation on the daily chart, indicating a rise in bearish sentiment.

"In the short term, sentiment is likely to continue driving the market trend, with the possibility of the index heading lower. Support on the lower end, is placed at 23800/23515," he mentioned.

--IANS

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