Sensex drops 183 pts; Nifty slips below 15,700

PTI, Jul 9, 2021, 4:26 PM IST

Mumbai: The BSE benchmark Sensex tumbled 183 points on Friday, tracking losses in index majors HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries and TCS.

The 30-share index ended 182.75 points or 0.35 per cent lower at 52,386.19. The broader NSE Nifty dropped 38.10 points or 0.24 per cent to close at 15,689.80.

Bajaj Auto was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding around 2 per cent, followed by TCS, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries and Tech Mahindra.

On the other hand, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel and NTPC were among the gainers.

Domestic equities traded on a weak note mainly led by continued profit-booking in financials, said Binod Modi, Head – Strategy at Reliance Securities.

However, metals, pharma and realty indices shined, while IT index remained soft after TCS missed earnings estimates, he said, adding that buying momentum remained visible in midcap and smallcap stocks as improved earnings prospect attracted investors” interest.

“While visible improvement in business momentum with ease of business curbs by states started offering comfort, recent uptick in daily caseload and increasing positive rate could be a near term risk as we saw Japan imposing fresh restrictions in Tokyo,” he noted.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo ended in the red, while Hong Kong was positive.

Stock exchanges in Europe were trading with gains in mid-session deals.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude rose 1.08 per cent to USD 74.92 per barrel.