The Indian equity benchmarks edged lower for second straight session as caution prevailed among investors ahead of the outcome of key meetings of world leaders taking place in Brussels. US President along with other NATO members are meeting to discuss further action to be taken on Russia amid the ongoing conflict with Ukraine analysts said. The benchmarks erased intraday gains in morning deals and traded in a rangebound manner with negative bias for most part of the day.
The Sensex declined 89 points to close at 57,596 and Nifty 50 index slipped 7 points to close at 17,239.
Ukraine President Volodymr Zelenskyy called on people worldwide to gather in public Thursday to show support for his embattled country as he prepared to address U.S. President Joe Biden and other NATO leaders gathered in Brussels on the one-month anniversary of the Russian invasion.
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Back home, Banking shares like Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and HDFC were among the top drags on the Sensex. The losses were however capped owing to buying interest in Reliance Industries, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Dr Reddy's Labs and ITC.
Seven of 15 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange ended lower led by the Nifty Private Bank and Bank indexes' nearly 2 per cent declines. Nifty Financial Services, PSU Bank and Consumer Durable indices also closed lower.
On the other hand, Nifty Media index jumped 5 per cent on the back of 20 per cent surge in Zee Entertainment.
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Mid- and small-cap shares outperformed their larger peers as Nifty Midcap 100 index rose 0.6 per cent and Nifty Smallcap 100 index rose 0.4 per cent.
Among the individual shares, Zee Entertainment surged 20 per cent to hit an intraday high of Rs 307 after its largest shareholder Invesco Developing Markets Fund yesterday decided not to pursue an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to add six independent directors as Zee’s merger with Sony will achieve the fund’s aim of strengthening board oversight.
Dr Reddy's Labs was top Nifty gainer, the stock rose 4.7 per cent to close at Rs 4,322. Coal India, UltraTech Cement, Hindalco, JSW Steel, Cipla, NTPC, Tech Mahindra, Reliance Industries and Tata Steel also rose between 1-2 per cent.
On the flipside, Kotak Mahindra Bank fell 3 per cent to close at Rs 1,715 on report that Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) was selling around 2.02 per cent stake in the bank. The floor price has been fixed between Rs 1,681-1,769.75.
Titan, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC, Divi's Labs, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Consumer Products, BPCL and Eicher Motors also fell between 1-2 per cent.
The overall market breadth was negative as 1,939 shares ended lower while 1,446 closed higher on the BSE.
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