Mumbai, March 3 : Benchmark Indian equity indices ended almost flat on Monday in a volatile trading session amid mixed global cues.
The 30-share Sensex closed at 73,085.94, down by 112.16 points or 0.15 per cent. The index fluctuated between a high of 73,649.72 and a low of 72,784.54 during the intra-day session.
The Nifty finished at 22,119.30, down just 5.40 points or 0.02 per cent from its previous close. The index reached a high of 22,261 during the session and dipped to a low of around 22,004.
The markets started the session in the positive, but momentum quickly shifted to the downside, with both frontline indices losing half a per cent by noon.
However, strong buying in metals, realty, and IT stocks helped fuel a recovery in the second half of the session.
Among the Nifty stocks, 33 out of 50 settled higher. Notable gainers included Bharat Electronics, Grasim, Eicher Motors, JSW Steel, and UltraTech Cement, with gains of up to 4.65 per cent.
Reliance Industries saw a decline of 2.17 per cent, contributing to the overall negative sentiment in the market.
In the broader market, the Nifty Midcap100 index ended the day higher, gaining 0.14 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap100 index closed slightly lower by 0.27 per cent.
Sectoral performance was mixed. The Nifty IT, Metal, Auto, Pharma, Realty, and Healthcare indices posted gains, with the highest increase of 1.26 per cent seen in the Nifty IT sector.
However, the banking, oil and gas, and media sectors closed lower in intra-day session, with losses reaching up to 1.10 per cent.
Following significant selling in the previous trading session, Indian markets saw some buying activity, as they tried to recover after the frontline indices posted their longest monthly losing streak since 1996.
According to Vatsal Bhuva from LKP Securities, Nifty found support around 22,000 and managed to close above the “crucial 38.2 per cent Fibonacci retracement level of 22,043, derived from the 2022 low of 15,213 to its all-time high of 26,277”.
However, the broader trend remains bearish, favouring a sell-on-rise approach unless Nifty decisively closes above 22,600, he added. (IANS)