The S&P BSE Sensex dropped 258 points, or 0.31%, to open at 83,680.70, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped 60.50 points, or 0.24%, to start at 25,661.60.
On the 30-stock Sensex, shares of Maruti Suzuki, Bharat Electronics Ltd., Titan, Adani Ports and Axis Bank led the declines, slipping between 1% and 3%.
The private bank index fell 0.3%, while FMCG stocks also edged 0.3% lower.
Defying the broader weakness, the PSU Bank index advanced 1.7% for the day.
In the broader market, small-caps climbed 0.6% and mid-caps added 0.2%.Shriram Finance jumped 4.6% after reporting a rise in quarterly profit, emerging as the top Nifty 50 gainer by percentage.
Expert views
Profit booking and FIIs again turning sellers prevented continuation of the rally to record highs, said Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, adding that “since the FII strategy of selling in India on rallies and moving money to other better performing markets has paid them rich dividends, they can be expected to continue the same strategy now also. A change in this scenario will happen only when we have leading indicators suggesting a smart turnaround in India’s corporate earnings.”
The Trump – Xi Jinping summit delivered only a temporary truce in the US-China trade war, not a trade deal. The implications of this on a possible US-India trade deal remain to be seen, said Vijayakumar, adding that “a significant trend in the industry is the sustained demand for automobiles, particularly small cars, which is turning out to be better than the optimistic expectations. Auto shares will remain resilient.”
In technical terms, during the last week, the market once again faced resistance near 26,100/85300 and reversed sharply, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research at Kotak Securities, adding that technically, on daily and intraday charts, the indices have “formed a double top-like pattern, and on weekly charts, a shooting star like formation has appeared, indicating further weakness. However, the short-term market outlook remains positive.”
“We believe that the 25,700–25,650/83900-83700 zone will act as a crucial support level for traders, while 26,000/85000 and 26,100/85300 could serve as key resistance areas for the bulls. A successful breakout above 26,100/85300 could push the market toward 26,250–26,350/85800-86100. Conversely, if the market falls below 25,650/83700, sentiment could turn negative, potentially slipping to 25,500–25,450/83300-83100,” said Chouhan.
FII/DII Tracker
On the institutional front, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth a little over Rs 6,769 crore on October 31, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 7,068 crore.
In the month of October, the FIIs bought stocks worth Rs 8,524.5 crore, reversing three months of selling, data from the securities depository showed.
Global Markets
Asian stocks edged higher Monday as investors assessed last week’s megacap earnings that underscored heavy spending on artificial intelligence.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.2% to 726.98, hovering near a 4.5-year high hit last week. The gauge is up more than 27% this year, pacing for its strongest annual gain since 2017.
Japanese markets were closed for a holiday, with the absence of cash Treasuries trading keeping regional activity subdued.
In the U.S., a number of Federal Reserve officials on Friday voiced unease over the central bank’s recent rate cut, while Fed Governor Christopher Waller argued for further easing to support a softening labour market. Chair Jerome Powell said another cut in December was “not a foregone conclusion.”
Traders now see a 69% chance of a December cut, down from near certainty before last week’s 25-basis-point reduction.
In commodities, gold slipped 0.4% to $3,985.35 an ounce, extending its pullback from last month’s record highs.
Crude impact
Oil prices advanced in early Asian trading Monday after OPEC+ opted to delay production increases in the first quarter of next year, easing concerns about a potential supply glut.
Brent crude futures rose 47 cents, or 0.73%, to $65.24 a barrel by 2336 GMT, after edging 7 cents higher on Friday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 45 cents, or 0.74%, to $61.43 a barrel, extending a 41-cent rise in the previous session.
Rupee vs Dollar
The Indian rupee slipped 7 paise to 88.77 against the dollar in early trade Monday, pressured by higher crude prices and persistent foreign capital outflows amid global trade uncertainty.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, eased 0.04% to 99.59 but hovered near a three-month high after hawkish remarks from Federal Reserve policymakers.
(with inputs from agencies)