Sensex, Nifty halt 3-day rally; banking, financial stocks weigh

Sensex and Nifty stock indices fell under selling pressure on Thursday as investors cut their exposure to banking, IT and finance stocks after three sessions of gains amid the US Federal Reserve’s hawkish stance on interest rates.

Weak opening in European markets and The depreciation of the rupee Traders also reduced their appetite for risk.

After rising in the past three days, the BSE Sensex Index fell by 310.88 points, or 0.49 percent, to settle at 62,917.63 points. On the day, it fell 357.43 points, or 0.56 percent, to 62,871.08 points.

The NSE Nifty Index fell by 67.80 points, or 0.36 percent, to close at 18,688.10.

Wipro was the biggest loser in the Sensex package, down nearly 2 percent, followed by IndusInd Bank, State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, HDFC and Bajaj Finserv.

On the other hand, the gainers included Nestle, Mahindra, Mahindra, ITC, HCL Technologies, Asian Paints and Maruti.

In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo closed lower, while Shanghai and Hong Kong settled in the green.

Stock markets in Europe were trading mixed. US markets ended mixed in overnight trading on Wednesday.

the The US Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate unchanged on Wednesday After raising it 10 times in a row to combat high inflation. But in a surprise move, the Fed indicated that it may raise interest rates twice more this year, starting next month.

Brent crude, the global benchmark, jumped 0.97 percent to $73.91 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,714.72 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

the The benchmark BSE index rose 85.35 points Or 0.14 percent, to settle at 63,228.51 on Wednesday. The Nifty Index advanced 39.75 points, or 0.21 percent, to close at 18,755.90.