HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank shares fall up to 3% as Nifty cracks 1.5%; Bank Nifty sheds nearly 750 pts

Bank Nifty faced selling pressure on April 1 as 9 out of its 12 constituents were trading in red, with HDFC Bank leading the losses.

At day's close on April 1, Bank Nifty closed 1.43% lower (737 points) at 50,827.

Shares of HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank were trading 3% and 2% lower at Rs 1,771 and Rs 1,321 apiece, respectively.

Kotak Mahindra Bank shares were trading 1.3% lower at Rs 2,142 apiece. Axis Bank shares declined nearly 2% to Rs 1,082 apiece.

The fall in financial stocks mirrors the pain in the benchmark indices as caution prevailed following US President Donald Trump's comments about broader reciprocal tariffs. At 1:25 pm, the Sensex was down 1,394.93 points or 1.8% at 76,019.99, and the Nifty was down 361.75 points or 1.54% at 23,157.60. About 2,384 shares advanced, 1,130 shares declined, and 123 shares were unchanged.

IndusInd Bank's shares bucked the trend by rising 4% to trade at Rs 677 apiece.

"For the Bank Nifty, the 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) at 51,000 would be a critical support zone. If the index remains above this level, it could maintain positive momentum up to 52,200-52,500. However, a close below the 200-day SMA or 51,000 could alter the sentiment. If this occurs, the likelihood of hitting 50,500-50,400 would increase," said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research, Kotak Securities.

"The banking index outperformed the frontline index and was one among the major contributor to the overall rally. It retraced at a faster pace, recovering multiple weeks of decline in just two weeks. From a pattern perspective, the index has been trading in a downward-sloping channel for the past six months. We expect it to retest the upper end of the channel, provided it holds the 50,500 zone. Meanwhile, the upper trendline of the channel coincides with the 52,800–53,000 zone," said Asit C Mehta Investment Interrmediates.