Nifty struggles to hold on to gains, PSU selloff dents broader market sentiment

Benchmark indices are struggling to bounce off from the lows of the day, with broader markets reeling under selling pressure weighed down by the PSU index and its components. At around 2:45pm on on March 12, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices were down 1.2 percent and 2 percent, underperforming the Nifty50 index.

Indian Bank and SJVN were among the top losers on BSE Midcap, while Paisalo Digital and Lancer Container Lines were the worst hit in the Smallcap category.

Sensex and Nifty gave up their early gains, with selling in banking names Axis Bank and ICICI Bank keeping the index subdued.

Investors have also turned cautious ahead of the release of key domestic data and US inflation numbers due later this evening. The US CPI data will be closely watched for any clues on US Federal Reserve's rate trajectory.

Most sectoral indices were in the negative territory, with Nifty Realty, media and PSU bank index among the worst hit. Nifty IT is the only major gainer while Nifty private bank index is trading flat.

"Despite the market reaching all-time highs, sentiments appear to be somewhat subdued. It may be advisable to focus on trading only in high-quality stocks under such circumstances," said Shrey Jain, Founder and CEO, SAS Online.

The expectation of trending moves on the upside is fading away in the absence of strength from the key index heavyweights, said Jatin Gedia, Technical Research Analyst at Sharekhan. "In terms of levels, 22,224–22,167 is the crucial support zone, while 22,530–22,600 is the immediate hurdle zone from short-term perspective."

TCS, HDFC Bank, LTIMindtree, Eicher Motors, Maruti Suzuki

Cipla, ITC, Adani Enterprises, SBI, Bajaj Auto

Praveg Limited: Shares gained over 4 percent at the open, a day after Goldman Sachs India Equity Portfolio picked up a 2.18 percent stake in the company.