Nifty closes lower; Pharma stocks underperformed

Markets witnessed a huge sell off as across the board selling pressure was seen in the major sectoral indices throughout the day.

Both Nifty and Bank Nifty index closed with deep cuts, closing ~2%/1.5% lower with Reliance Industries leading the laggards.

Nifty Pharma index closed ~3% lower with the stocks like Aurobindo Pharma, Sun Pharma, Lupin & Dr Reddys adding fresh short positions.

Midcap 100 index closed ~1.5% lower.

Market breadth ended in the favour of the declines with the advance/decline ratio closing at 1:2x. Nifty and Bank Nifty saw an addition of short positions during the day.

On the options front (February 25, 2021 expiry), across the board option writing was seen in call option strikes as Bank Nifty trended lower. India Vix index closed at 25.8, up ~16%.