Indices end lower: Auto, realty, metals drag; banks gain

Market update at 3.30 PM: It was a disappointing second half as Nifty tumbled heavily towards the end and hit the day’s low at 18,087. In the end, Nifty slipped about 1.07 per cent to close at 18,113 whereas, Sensex lost about 571 points. Moreover, Nifty Midcap and Nifty Smallcap too witnessed the selling pressure as both were dragged about 2.06 per cent & 2.45 per cent, respectively.   

Besides, India VIX surged over 6 per cent. All the sectoral indices, apart from Bank Nifty, slipped about a per cent each. Nifty Auto, Nifty Realty, and Nifty Metal fell over 2 per cent each. The top three gainers of Nifty included the banking stocks such as Axis Bank (1.78 per cent), ICICI Bank (0.45 per cent), and HDFC Bank (0.43 per cent).  

Moreover, Nifty has formed a bearish engulfing pattern. The 18,000 happens to be the key support now. If this level is breached, we might see further weakness in the index.  

Finance Minister will be addressing the media at 4.30 pm and this would be the key event to watch out for after the market hours.  

Market update at 12.45 PM: Indices have recovered from their day’s low after a dismal first hour. Nifty recovered around 80 points and is trading about a quarter per cent lower. Meanwhile, Sensex has lost about 125 points.  

Nifty Midcap is marginally down while Nifty Smallcap has slipped about half a per cent.  

The key indices supporting Nifty include Nifty Bank & Nifty Realty whereas, FMCG, IT, pharma, auto, and PSU banks indices are down.  

Moreover, India VIX has surged over 2 per cent.  

The weakness still persists in the market today, and it remains to be seen whether Nifty reclaims 18,300 levels or falls further.  

Market update at 10.15 AM: After a steady start, the Indian benchmark indices witnessed a roller-coaster ride as the US 10-year bond yields jumped over 4 per cent and touched a fresh one-year high of 1.855 per cent.   

Nifty is down by nearly half a per cent and from the day’s high, it is down by nearly 120 points.   

The advance-decline ratio was clearly in favour of bears as 37 stocks from Nifty 50 pack were trading in the red.   

Among the sectoral indices, Nifty Realty was the top gainer as it gained about 0.82 per cent and interestingly, the majority of the components of Nifty Realty were trading in green led by Prestige Estate & Brigade Enterprises.   

Meanwhile, India VIX is up by nearly 3 per cent.   

Pre-market update: The US markets were closed last night and thus, Asian markets have opened mixed due to lack of global cues. SGX Nifty indicates a flat opening for Nifty. 

Early Tuesday morning, Crude oil surges yet another per cent on account of supply tightening. 

On the last trading session, both FIIs and DIIs were net sellers and have sold for about Rs 855 crore & Rs 115 crore, respectively. 

Bajaj Finance would be declaring results today, and thus, will be the key stock to watch out for. 

Last night, auto sector outperformed the other indices by a huge margin and the sector is expected to continue its momentum. 

The next target level is 18,342 for Nifty, which is its prior swing high. Closing above this level shall see the path towards 18,500