Indian equity benchmarks ended the trading day in negative territory on Monday, pressured by declines in Consumer Durables, Auto and Oil & Gas stocks.
At the close on the National Stock Exchange, the Nifty 50 was off 1.24%. On the Bombay Stock Exchange, the Sensex 30 retreated 1.29%.
Winners and losers
On the Nifty 50, the session's strongest performers included Bharat Electronics Ltd (NSE:BAJE), which advanced 2.13% or 9.45 points to finish at 454.15. Hindalco Industries Ltd. (NSE:HALC) added 1.70% or 15.75 points to close at 940.45, while Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NSE:SUN) rose 0.92% or 16.00 points to end at 1,753.00.
At the other end of the Nifty ledger, Larsen & Toubro Ltd (NSE:LART) fell 5.24% or 224.30 points to trade at 4,054.00. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (NSE:APSE) declined 3.43% or 52.10 points to close at 1,468.90, and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (NSE:MRTI) slipped 3.29% or 489.00 points to 14,368.00.
Sensex movers
On the BSE Sensex 30, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (BO:SUN) rose 0.82% to 1,752.35, and ITC Ltd (BO:ITC) was up 0.37% to settle at 314.75. Bharti Airtel Ltd (BO:BRTI) recorded a decline of 0.36% to close at 1,873.00.
The weakest on the Sensex included Larsen & Toubro Ltd (BO:LART), down 5.22% to 4,057.00, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (BO:APSE), which lost 3.42% to finish at 1,468.90, and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (BO:MRTI), down 3.20% to 14,394.00 at the close.
Market breadth and notable milestones
Declining stocks significantly outnumbered advancers on both exchanges. On the NSE, 2,178 shares fell while 367 advanced and 32 ended unchanged. On the BSE, 3,350 issues lost ground, 771 rose and 136 were unchanged. Bharat Electronics Ltd (NSE:BAJE) rose to an all-time high, gaining 2.13% or 9.45 to 454.15.
Volatility, commodities and currencies
Volatility climbed: the India VIX, which tracks implied volatility for Nifty 50 options, increased 23.54% to 16.93, marking a six-month high.
Commodities saw strong moves in the session. Gold Futures for April delivery rose 3.03% or 158.91 to $5,406.81 a troy ounce. In energy markets, crude oil for April delivery rose 7.48% or 5.01 to $72.03 a barrel, while the May Brent oil contract increased 7.90% or 5.76 to trade at $78.63 a barrel.
Currency and dollar strength were also notable. USD/INR was up 0.57% at 91.56, while EUR/INR fell 0.11% to 107.48. The US Dollar Index Futures rose 0.57% to 98.12.
This session reflected broad selling pressure concentrated in a few key sectors, accompanied by a sharp rise in implied volatility and significant moves in commodities and FX markets.