Sensex Extends Decline For Third Straight Day, Nifty 50 Settles Below 25,200 Amid H-1B Visa Woes, Weekly Expiry

Domestic equities ended lower amid a volatile trade on September 23, with the benchmark indices extending their losses for the third consecutive session. Investor sentiment remained subdued amid concerns over increased fees for H-1B visas, continued foreign fund outflows, and other global cues. The session also saw significant volatility as the expiry of Nifty weekly derivatives contracts (futures and options) added to the pressure on the benchmark indices.

At close, Sensex was at 82,102.10, down 57.87 points, or 0.07 per cent, and Nifty 50 was at 25,169.50, down 32.85 points, or 0.13 per cent.

During the session, Sensex made an intraday high of 82,370.38 and an intraday low of 81,776.53, a swing of nearly 600 points. Likewise, Nifty 50 touched a high and low of 25,261.90 and 25,084.65, representing a swing of over 175 points.

Broader Markets Lag Benchmarks

The broader market indices, too, closed in red, lagging the losses in the benchmarks. Of the 3,136 stocks traded on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) today, 1,329 stocks ended in green, 1,714 stocks closed in red, while 93 settled flat.

The Nifty Midcap 100 closed 0.35 per cent lower, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 ended 0.53 per cent down. The Nifty 500 index, which represents more than 92 per cent of the free float market cap of all NSE-listed stocks, lost 0.24 per cent. The Nifty Microcap 250, tracking the 250 most liquid and valuable stocks beyond Nifty 500 constituents, too, closed lower by 0.29 per cent.

FMCG, Realty, IT Weigh, Banks, Metal End Higher

Nifty FMCG declined the most, falling 1.29 per cent, to emerge as the top sectoral loser of the session. Nifty Realty and Nifty IT followed, with 0.89 per cent and 0.71 per cent losses.

Nifty Energy, Nifty Consumer Durables, Nifty Pharma, Nifty Healthcare, and Nifty Media were also among the top losers.

On the other hand, supporting the markets were Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Metal, each gaining more than 1 per cent. Nifty Auto, Nifty Private Bank, and Nifty Financial Services also closed higher in the green.

Nifty Bank closed higher by 0.41 per cent at 55,509.75.

Nifty 50 Top Gainers & Losers

IndusInd Bank and Axis Bank were the top gainers in Nifty 50, rising 2.82 per cent and 2.24 per cent, respectively.

Bajaj Finance, JSW Steel, Maruti Suzuki India, State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Adani Enterprises, NTPC, and Tata Steel were other top gainers, rising between 1 per cent and 2 per cent.

On the other hand, Tech Mahindra, Trent, and SBI Life Insurance fell more than 2 per cent each, emerging as the top losers of the session. Hindustan Unilever, Nestle India, HDFC Life Insurance, UltraTech Cement, Grasim Industries, Asian Paints, and Hero Moto Corp were among the other top losers.

Crude Oil Price Today

Brent Oil November futures gained over 0.90 per cent to trade at $67.17 per barrel, while the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude Oil November Futures traded with gains of 1.04 per cent at $62.92 per barrel, as of 4:10 PM.

Gold Price Today

Gold prices today rose to new record highs amid festive demand and in anticipation of further US Federal Reserve rate cuts by this year-end.

Gold October futures on the Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX) jumped as much as 1.73 per cent to Rs 1,14,179 per 10 grams. At 4:15 PM, the contract traded at Rs 1,14,022 per 10 grams, up by 1.60 per cent.

On the COMEX, December Gold futures traded at $3,818.30 per ounce, up by 1.14 per cent.

USD vs INR

The Indian rupee touched a new record low on September 23, weighed down by continued foreign fund outflows, worries over US tariffs, and a widening trade deficit.

The currency slipped to 88.46 against the US dollar, breaching its earlier low of 88.45 hit two weeks ago. On September 22, it had closed at 88.28 per dollar, down 12 paise.

Primary Market Action

Anand Rathi Share & Stock Brokers, Seshaasai Technologies, Jaro Institute of Technology, and Solarworld Energy Solutions opened bidding windows for their initial public offerings (IPOs) on September 23 and will close on September 25.

Euro Pratik Sales share price made a decent debut on the NSE and BSE, listing with a premium of over 10 per cent over the issue price. On the NSE, the stock listed at Rs 272.10 per share, a premium of 10.16 per cent, and on the BSE, it listed at Rs 273.45 per share, a premium of 10.71 per cent.

The three-day bidding window for the GK Energy IPO and the Saatvik Green Energy IPO closed today, September 23. The basis of allotment is expected to be finalised by September 24 for both issues.

Market Outlook

Manufacturing PMI Data: The S&P Global will release the September flash Purchasing Managers' Indices (PMIs) data for most major economies, including the United States (US). It was released for India earlier today, which showed that the private sector growth eased in September from August's multi-year high, as softer demand weighed on new orders and hiring. The HSBC Flash India Composite PMI, compiled by S&P Global, slipped to 61.9 from 63.2 in August. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in business activity.

India-US Trade Deal: After months of delay, talks on an India-US trade deal are back on track with a high-level Indian delegation, led by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, in Washington to resume negotiations. Signals from both sides suggest progress toward concluding the long-pending agreement, though past efforts have stalled at similar stages. Investors will be watching the developments closely for further cues.