Stock Market Update: Nifty hovers around 18,000, Sensex drops nearly 250 points; HDFC twins among top losers

The domestic equity market edged lower in the afternoon trade amid fears of imported inflation due to spike in crude prices on Tuesday. Oil futures rose on Tuesday as the United States and Europe planned new sanctions to punish Moscow over alleged war crimes by Russian troops in Ukraine, raising concerns of tighter global supply, while Iran nuclear talks stalled, said a Reuters report. 

Brent crude futures rose $1.87, or 1.7%, to $109.40 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were up $1.83, or 1.8%, at $105.11 a barrel at 0615 GMT. 

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After opening with marginal gains, benchmarks have been trading with minor cuts. The broader Nifty 50 declined 0.25% to trade just above 18,000-marks, while the Sensex dropped nearly 250 points to trade around 60,300.  

The Nifty Bank too declined by over 300 points as 12-share banking index traded near 38,300 

Outperforming the benchmarks, Nifty mid cap and small cap indices surged by over 1% around 12.55 pm on Tuesday. India VIX rose by nearly 3% to o past 18-mark.  

Sectorally, Auto, FMCG, PSU Bank and Consumer Durables gained in a flat market and private bank and financial services declined.  

Adani Ports, Eicher Motors, Tata Motors, ITC , ONGC, TCS, NTPC, HCL Tech, M&M, Asian Paints and Nestle India were top gainers on Tuesday. HDFC twins led the pack of laggards, while Bajaj Finserv, RIL, Bjajaj Finance, Kotak Bank, Wipro and Infosys traded negatively too.