India's major stock indices finished in negative territory on Thursday, with sectoral weakness in Capital Goods, Metals and Technology driving the pullback.
At the close on the National Stock Exchange, the Nifty 50 declined 0.52%. On the Bombay Stock Exchange, the Sensex 30 fell 0.60%.
Session leaders and laggards - Nifty 50
The top performers on the Nifty 50 included Trent Ltd (NSE:TREN), which gained 3.05% - up 122.40 points to close at 4,135.00. Tata Steel Ltd (NSE:TISC) added 1.33% or 2.59 points to end at 197.99, and JSW Steel Ltd (NSE:JSTL) rose 1.04% or 12.80 points to finish at 1,241.00.
On the downside, Hindalco Industries Ltd. (NSE:HALC) slid 3.00% or 28.95 points to close at 936.00. Eternal Ltd (NSE:ETEA) fell 2.41% or 7.10 points to 287.05, and Bharti Airtel Ltd. (NSE:BRTI) dropped 1.67% or 33.90 points to end at 1,991.90.
BSE Sensex 30 movers
On the BSE, Tata Steel Ltd (BO:TISC) rose 1.31% to 197.80. State Bank Of India (BO:SBI) gained 0.45% to settle at 1,072.90, and Bajaj Finance Ltd (BO:BJFN) closed up 0.15% at 965.00.
The weakest names on the Sensex were Eternal Ltd (BO:ETEA), which fell 2.46% to 287.00, Bharti Airtel Ltd (BO:BRTI), down 1.61% to 1,992.85, and ITC Ltd (BO:ITC), which declined 1.15% to 310.25.
Market breadth and notable milestones
Declines outnumbered advances across both exchanges. On the NSE, 1,600 stocks fell while 888 advanced and 40 finished unchanged. On the BSE, 2,326 issues declined, 1,637 advanced and 144 were unchanged. JSW Steel Ltd (NSE:JSTL) reached an all-time high, climbing 1.04% or 12.80 points to 1,241.00.
The India VIX, a gauge of implied volatility for Nifty 50 options, moved lower by 0.90% to 12.14.
Commodities and currency moves
In commodities, Gold Futures for April delivery fell 1.48% or $73.05 to $4,877.75 a troy ounce. Crude oil prices were lower as well: March crude fell 1.38% or $0.90 to $64.24 a barrel, and the April Brent contract declined 1.35% or $0.94 to $68.52 a barrel.
Currency markets showed modest moves against the rupee. USD/INR was down 0.14% to 90.25, while EUR/INR declined 0.24% to 106.46. The US Dollar Index Futures rose 0.22% to 97.70.
Outlook notes
Thursday's session recorded broad selling pressure across Indian exchanges, with metals among the more active sectors given both gains in select steel names and weakness in certain metal producers. Volatility as measured by the India VIX eased slightly despite the market decline. Moves in commodities and currency pairs were mixed, with both gold and crude oil prices lower on the day.