Indian shares gave up early gains to end marginally lower on Monday as metal stocks succumbed to heavy selling pressure, offsetting gains in the automobile sector.
Markets surrendered initial gains after RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said the central bank would continue to hike interest rates to quell inflationary pressures but it would be premature to say that the repo rate would be hiked to pre-Covid levels.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex index hit as high as 54,931.30 before reversing course to end the session down 37.78 points, or 0.07 percent, at 54,288.61.
Likewise, the broader NSE Nifty index hit a high of 16,414.70 earlier before settling at 16,214.70, down 51.45 points, or 0.32 percent, from its previous close.
Metal stocks were hit hard after the Central government levied export duty on 11 iron and steel intermediates and key steel products. Tata Steel slumped 12.3 percent and JSW Steel plunged 13.2 percent.
Divis Laboratories lost 9.6 percent despite the pharma major reporting robust earnings for the fourth quarter ended March.
On the positive side, Wipro, Larsen & Toubro, Hindustan Unilever, Maruti Suzuki India and Mahindra & Mahindra climbed 2-3 percent.
Cues from Asia and Europe were mixed as the financial hub of Shanghai lifted some of its COVID-19 restrictions and U.S. President Joe Biden said he was weighing cutting tariffs on Chinese goods.
Beijing extended work-from-home guidance for many of its 22 million residents after reporting 99 new infections for the previous day, the largest daily tally so far during a month-old outbreak.
Market Analysis
Sensex, Nifty Give Up Early Gains
2022-05-23 10:31:00
