Indian equity markets witnessed a sharp sell-off during today’s session, with the benchmark index failing to sustain key support levels. The Nifty moved higher in early trade but selling pressure soon intensified, dragging the index sharply lower and leading to a decisive breach of the crucial technical and psychological 26,000 mark. On the sectoral front, Media and PSU banking stocks showed relative resilience and managed to trade in the green, outperforming the broader market.
As per Ashika Institutional Equities in contrast, pronounced weakness was seen across Realty, IT, Healthcare, Energy, and Pharma stocks, which remained under pressure throughout the session. Market participants largely stayed cautious ahead of the release of India’s industrial and manufacturing production data scheduled later today, which is expected to provide cues on the near-term economic outlook.
Silver remained in focus during the session, but prices saw profit-taking after touching recent highs, reflecting a cautious tone in the precious metals space.
In the derivatives market, overall breadth pointed to bearish undertones, with declining stocks clearly outnumbering advances. A notable increase in open interest was seen in stocks such as Alkem Laboratories, NMDC, SAIL, Petronet LNG, and Cummins India, indicating heightened derivatives activity in these counters.
In the Nifty options segment, call options at key higher strike levels saw the highest open interest, while put options around important support levels also attracted significant interest, highlighting the crucial levels being closely monitored by market participants.
