Sensex ends 224 pts higher in uneven trade, Nifty flat; Adani Ent skids 27%

CLOSING BELL

Domestic equity markets exhibited mixed trends in Thursday's trade as investors remained wary of the deep selloff in Adani Group stocks, despite an overall positive Budget 2023 tone. 

Benchmark indices Nifty50 closed flat at 17,604 levels, whereas the S&P BSE Sensex advanced 224 points or 0.3 per cent to close at 59,932 levels. While the Nifty50 managed to climb 37 points to hit day's high of 17,653, it later reversed 208 points gain to hit day's low of 17,445 levels.

The S&P BSE Sensex, meanwhile, hit day's high and low of 60,007, and 59,215, respectively.

Broader markets, however, outperformed benchmark indices as Nifty MidCap 100 and Nifty SmallCap 100 indices surged up to 0.5 per cent.

Sectorally, Nifty FMCG and Nifty IT indices were best sectoral gainers, gaining up to 2 per cent. On the flipside, Nifty Metal index was the worst sectoral performer as it sank over 4 per cent.

Among individual stocks, shares of ITC rallied 6 per cent to hit a new lifetime high level of Rs 384.40 as brokerages believe that the proposed tax hike on cigarette in the Union Budget 2023 is not very high and would be easily passed on through small price increases. READ MORE

Besides, shares of HDFC Life Insurance Company slipped 6 per cent to hit an over two-year low of Rs 483.10, on the back of heavy volumes. READ MORE

GLOBAL CHECK

The US equity futures edged higher in Wednesday's trade after Meta reported an upbeat earnings. Dow Jones Futures, the S&P 500 Futures, and NASDAQ Futures surged up to 1 per cent.

European markets, too, climbed this noon ahead of central bank decisions. Key indices like Stoxx 600, CAC 40, FTSE 100, and DAX rose up to 1 per cent.