Sensex, Nifty end lower as auto stocks drive market correction

Benchmark stock market indices closed in red on Thursday dragged by a decline in stocks of major auto companies.
The S&P BSE Sensex was down 494.75 points to close at 81,006.61, while the NSE Nifty50 lost 221.45 points to end at 24,749.85.
Aditya Gaggar Director of Progressive Shares, said that finally, the Index broke its range of 24,920-25,200.
“After a muted opening, Auto stocks led correction dragged the Index lower and in the second half of the trading session, another round of selling pulled the Index further lower to end the session at 24,749.85 with a loss of 221.45 points. Barring IT, all the other sectors ended the session in red with Realty and Auto being the major laggards,” he added.
Technology giants led the gainers with Infosys and Tech Mahindra showing strong momentum, advancing by 2.84% and 2.81% respectively. Power Grid Corporation followed with a gain of 1.21%, while Larsen & Toubro added 0.95%, and State Bank of India moved up by 0.73%.
Bajaj Auto witnessed the steepest decline, tumbling 13.11%, followed by Shriram Finance which fell 4.11%. M&M slipped 3.52%, while Nestle India dropped 3.44%, and Hero MotoCorp rounded off the top losers with a decline of 3.39%.
“Broader markets underperformed the Frontline Index as Mid and Smallcaps tanked by 1.66% & 1.24% respectively. A bearish marubozu open candle on the daily chart depicts a strong domination of bears but the Index stands at a strong support level of 24,750 (tested on 9th September and 7th October). A break below the mentioned level will drag the Index towards 24,430; and in the case of a reversal, 24,950 will be considered as immediate support,” said Gaggar.
Nifty Realty saw the biggest decline of 3.76%. The auto sector also witnessed significant selling pressure, with Nifty Auto falling 3.54%. Nifty Media dropped 2.18%, while Nifty Consumer Durables declined by 2.20%. Financial indices showed weakness across the board, with Nifty Financial Services 25/50 down 1.41%, Nifty Financial Services declining 1.25%, and Nifty Private Bank falling 1.12%.
Other sectors in negative territory included Nifty Metal (-1.42%), Nifty Oil & Gas (-1.26%), Nifty FMCG (-1.64%), Nifty PSU Bank (-0.50%), Nifty Bank (-0.99%), and both healthcare indices showing declines with Nifty Healthcare down 1.03% and Nifty Pharma declining 0.91%.
The only bright spot in today’s session was the IT sector, with Nifty IT bucking the trend to post a gain of 1.19%.