Indian Benchmark Indices Conclude Weaker, Nifty Closes Below 19,700 Mark

18 Oct 2023 , 03:40 PM

On October 18, the benchmark indices concluded the day with a weaker performance, as the Nifty closed below the 19,700 mark.

At the closing bell, the Sensex experienced a decline of 551.07 points or 0.83%, settling at 65,877.02, while the Nifty dropped 140.40 points or 0.71% to reach 19,671.10. Among the total stocks traded, 1424 saw gains, 2144 registered losses, and 137 remained unchanged.

The major losers of the day included Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC, BPCL, and Axis Bank, while top gainers were Cipla, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, and SBI Life Insurance.

With the exception of the auto and pharma sectors, all other sectoral indices ended in negative territory, with power, information technology, oil & gas, realty, and banking sectors each witnessing a decline ranging from 0.5 to 1%. High-weightage financial stocks also saw a 0.52% drop, with Bajaj Finance being the biggest loser in the Nifty 50, shedding as much as 2.13%.

This decline in Bajaj Finance’s stock price followed its announcement of a smaller-than-expected rise in profit for the September quarter, which was revealed post-market hours on Tuesday. This performance was attributed to increased provisions for bad loans.

Furthermore, the BSE Midcap index experienced a 0.8% decline, while the Smallcap index fell by 0.2%.