FINAL TRADE: Sensex slumps 384 pts, Nifty slides to 22,302.5 amid broad-based sell-off

Stock market today: Domestic equity benchmarks Nifty50 and Sensex gave up early gains to finish lower on Tuesday, May 7 amid a broad-based sell-off on D-Street. A rise in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies was offset by a fall in financials, oil & gas and auto stocks, with volatility rising to its highest in fifteen months.

The leaner Sensex index fell 383.69 points, or 0.52 per cent, to settle at 73,511.85. The 50-share index Nifty settled at 22,302.5, down 140.2 points, or 0.62 per cent.

Among the Nifty companies, 34 stocks were declining while 16 stocks were advancing. Hindustan Unilever, Tech Mahindra, Nestle India, Britannia, and ITC led the gains, while Bajaj-Auto, Power Grid, ONGC, IndusInd Bank, and Hindalco were the top decliners.

"Despite positive global cues, the domestic market continued to consolidate. The domestic market is witnessing profit booking due to various factors, including a low turnout in the ongoing election and premium valuations," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services said. 

"However, FMCG remained the biggest sectoral gainer in today’s trading session, driven by expectations of improving volume growth from rural areas aided by favourable monsoon expectations," he added. 

India VIX, a volatility gauge also referred to as the fear index, surged to hit levels over 17 as the Phase 3 polling of the Lok Sabha elections is underway. Read more 

Nifty Bank and Nifty Financial Services lost 1.25 per cent and 0.92 per cent respectively. Meanwhile, Nifty SmallCap 100 and Nifty MidCap 100 fell nearly 2 per cent each. 

Global Market

European shares hit a more-than-one-month high on Tuesday, as a slew of positive corporate earnings, including from Switzerland's UBS and Italy's UniCredit, added to the upbeat sentiment surrounding interest rate cuts.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.4 per cent, as of 0805 GMT -- after closing at a one-week high on Monday -- fuelled by increased bets of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank this year.

(with inputs from Reuters)

For all other news related to business, politics, tech and auto, visit Zeebiz.com.