Markets at 7-week low: Sensex down 100 pts, Nifty below 24,700 as IT, bank shares fall; smallcap index falls for 9th day

Sensex. Nifty see profit-booking in July 29 trading session.

The equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty declined for the fourth consecutive session on Tuesday amid weak global cues and subdued quarterly earnings. Selling pressure in IT and banking shares, along with sustained foreign fund outflows weighed on the investor sentiment.

At around 12:20 p.m., Sensex dropped 65.73 points or 0.08 percent to 80,825.30, while the broader Nifty slipped 16.10 points or 0.07 percent to 24,664.80. The Nifty touched its lowest level since June 4, when it had hit 24,530.45, marking its sharpest intraday loss in nearly seven weeks.

The Nifty Smallcap index fell for the ninth straight session, with investors trimming positions on concerns over high valuations. "The Nifty Small Cap index formed a negative divergence along with RSI around recent highs, indicating weakening momentum," said Ruchit Jain, Vice President, Motilal Oswal Financial Services. He added that the index may find support near the 16,900–16,800 zone.

Nifty Bank declined 0.08 percent, while Nifty IT was down 0.55 percent. The consumer durables index also slipped, trading 0.38 percent lower.

Among key laggards on the Nifty were Bharat Electronics, Axis Bank, Eicher Motors, TCS and Titan, which dropped up to 2 per cent.

According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 6,082.47 crore on Monday, extending their selling streak.

“There are more headwinds than tailwinds for the market now,” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services. “The absence of a trade deal between India and the US ahead of the August 1 deadline and persistent FII selling are dampening the mood despite DII support,” he noted.

Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit, observed that 65 per cent of Nifty 500 constituents closed within 1 per cent of their daily lows. “The region around 24,750–24,650 has absorbed multiple downside attempts, and while further pressure cannot be ruled out, we anticipate a potential turnaround without a deep fall to 24,450 or 24,000. Key resistance is seen at 24,922–25,050,” he said.