Markets trade flat; Sensex down 108 points, Nifty slips 41 points

Markets traded with slight downward pressure during the mid-day session on Monday, reflecting selective sectoral performance. By 12:35 PM, the Sensex was down 108.20 points (0.13 per cent) at 81,600.92, while the Nifty 50 fell 41.40 points (0.17 per cent) to 24,636.40.

Market breadth remained positive, with 2,418 stocks advancing against 1,556 declines on the BSE. An impressive 268 stocks hit 52-week highs, compared to just 16 at 52-week lows.

Sectoral overview

Banking and financial stocks supported the indices. The Nifty Bank rose 91.30 points (0.17 per cent), while Nifty Financial Services gained 103 points (0.42 per cent). Midcaps also held strong, with the Nifty Midcap Select index up 39.80 points (0.31 per cent).

Conversely, FMCG stocks dragged the markets lower. Tata Consumer fell 3.73 per cent, Hindustan Unilever slipped 3.45 per cent, and Britannia declined 1.54 per cent.

Key movers

Larsen & Toubro led gainers, surging 2 per cent, followed by SBI Life (+1.76 per cent) and HDFC Bank (+1.11 per cent). In contrast, consumer-focused stocks like Nestlé India (-1.89 per cent) and Hindalco (-2.11 per cent) underperformed.

Macro impact

The RBI’s decision to maintain the repo rate at 6.5 per cent while cutting the Cash Reserve Ratio by 50 basis points to infuse Rs 1.16 lakh crore into the system buoyed banking and infrastructure stocks. However, investors remain cautious ahead of CPI data and European Central Bank updates.

The closing session will reveal if these mixed trends persist.