Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building in Mumbai
| Photo Credit: AP

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty fell in early trade on Thursday (November 7, 2024) after two days of rally as investors remained on the sidelines ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate decision.

Market analysts said unabated foreign fund outflows and mixed global cues further dented investor sentiments.

The BSE Sensex declined 237.93 points to 80,140.20 in early trade. The NSE Nifty dropped 109.1 points to 24,374.95.

From the 30-share Sensex pack, Bajaj Finserv, UltraTech Cement, Power Grid, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Adani Ports and Nestle were among the biggest laggards.

Tata Steel climbed over 1% after the firm reported a net profit of ₹758.84 crore for the September 2024 quarter.

HCL Technologies, Tata Consultancy Services and JSW Steel were also the gainers from the pack.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹4,445.59 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Shanghai and Hong Kong traded higher while Tokyo quoted lower.

Wall Street ended significantly higher on Wednesday.

“In overnight trade, Wall Street hit record highs, driven by optimism surrounding Trump’s presidency and hopes for increased fiscal spending and tax cuts to boost growth,” Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

Republican leader Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election for a second term, handing a shock defeat to his Democratic rival Kamala Harris, in one of the most remarkable comebacks in American electoral history, by rising from the political wilderness four years after his eviction from the White House and subsequent failed attempt to overturn the 2020 election outcome.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.92% to USD 75.61 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark jumped 901.50 points or 1.13% to settle at 80,378.13 on Wednesday. The Nifty soared 270.75 points or 1.12% to 24,484.05.

Image used for representative purpose only
| Photo Credit: R. Ragu

The rupee appreciated 5 paise to 83.24 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on May 31 boosted by robust sentiment in domestic equity markets and a downward trend in the crude oil prices overseas.

Forex traders said, however, strong American currency and unabated outflow of foreign capital weighed on the local unit.

Also, they said market participants are expected to take cues from domestic macroeconomic data to be released later in the day.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.25 and gained further to trade at 83.24 against the greenback in initial deals, registering an increase of 5 paise from its previous closing level.

On Thursday, the rupee gained 11 paise to close at 83.29 against the U.S. dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.13 per cent higher at 104.79.

The latest US GDP data released on Thursday showed the world’s largest economy grew at a slower pace of 1.3% against the projected 1.6% in the January-March quarter. This triggered expectations of interest rate reduction by the Federal Reserve.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.38% to USD 81.55 per barrel.

On the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 500.19 points, or 0.68% higher at 74,385.79 points. The broader NSE Nifty soared 143.80 points or 0.64% to 22,632.45 points in initial trade.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Thursday, selling shares worth ₹3,050.15 crore, according to exchange data.