Sensex and Nifty Gain Ground Fueled by Bajaj Finance; Banking Stocks Struggle

On October 23, 2024, Indian benchmark indices experienced a positive trend during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The Sensex climbed 214.58 points or 0.27% to reach 80,435.30, while the Nifty increased by 66.95 points, also 0.27%, landing at 24,539.05. This rally followed a lower opening earlier in the day.

Bajaj Finance was the standout performer, surging by 5.69%, followed closely by Bajaj Finserv which gained 2.70%. Other notable risers included Bajaj Auto with a 2.50% increase, Tech Mahindra at 2.41%, and TCS rising 1.74%. This indicated a robust performance particularly in the financial services and technology sectors.

In contrast, banking stocks struggled, with the Nifty Bank index decreasing by 57.90 points or 0.11%, settling at 51,199.25. ICICI Bank faced a downward pressure, dropping 1.66%, which contributed to the overall sector decline. NTPC recorded a significant fall of 2.20%, while Adani Ports declined by 1.59%. Other companies like Eicher Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra also saw declines of 1.31% and 1.20% respectively.

The broader market displayed a positive trend, with advances significantly outnumbering declines. Among the 3,914 stocks traded on the BSE, 2,178 stocks saw gains, whereas 1,606 stocks faced losses, and 130 remained unchanged. This session also saw 103 stocks reaching 52-week highs, while 154 hit their 52-week lows.

The Nifty Midcap Select index showed notable strength, climbing 143.00 points or 1.15% to 12,585.25, outpacing the benchmark indices. Simultaneously, the Nifty Financial Services index experienced a gain of 68.30 points or 0.29% to reach 23,768.65, despite the mixed performance in the banking sector.

During the trading session, circuit filters were triggered for various stocks, with 193 hitting the upper circuit and 309 touching the lower circuit.

Despite facing challenges such as foreign institutional investor (FII) selling and high U.S. Treasury yields, the market displayed resilience. The recovery from the opening levels, where the Sensex started at 79,921.13 and the Nifty at 24,378.15, indicates a growing buying interest at lower levels.

Market participants are keeping a close watch on global cues and the upcoming quarterly results for further market direction.

Sensex, Nifty, Banking