Market weekly check: NIFTY50, SENSEX fall for second straight week; SMIDs flat, Axis Bank, JSW Steel top losers

The market sentiment was majorly driven by global cues and volatility in the domestic currency against the US dollar. Also, foreign fund inflows in the last two sessions further lifted investor confidence.

At the end of the trading session on Friday, the rupee was quoted at 89.66 (provisional), up 54 paise from its previous close. On Thursday, the rupee appreciated by 18 paise to close at 90.20 against the US dollar. The rupee sank to a fresh record low, breaching the 91-a-dollar mark for the first time on Tuesday.

The Indian equity market snapped its four-day losing streak and closed higher on Friday as auto, pharma and realty stocks rallied, and positive global cues also added to the optimism.

Weekly top gainers & losers

On the NIFTY50 index, Axis Bank was the worst performer of the week, tumbling 4.3%. JSW Steel and Zomato parent Eternal also featured among the top losers, slumping 4.1% and 4%, respectively. Sun Pharmaceutical fell 2.7%, while ONGC slipped 2.2%, rounding out the list of major decliners.

On the flip side, Shriram Finance (6.3%), IndiGo operator InterGlobe Aviation (6%), Tata Consumer Products (3%), Infosys (2.5%), and Tech Mahindra (2.2%) ended as the week’s biggest gainers.

Sectoral watch this week

Among sectors, the Nifty Private Bank index was the biggest laggard, sliding 1.4%, followed by Nifty Media, which fell 1.1%. Nifty Auto and Nifty India Defence declined 0.6% each, while the Nifty Bank index ended the week 0.5% lower.

Within the Private Bank index, Axis Bank (-4.3%), RBL Bank (-2.4%), HDFC Bank (1.6%), Yes Bank (1%), and ICICI Bank (0.9%) emerged as the top weekly losers.

The Nifty PSU Bank index topped the gainers with a 1.3% rise, followed by Nifty IT, which advanced 1.1%. Nifty FMCG and Consumer Durables also posted modest gains of 0.5% each.

How the broader market performed this week

On the broader market, both the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 finished the week largely on a flat note.

On the Nifty Midcap 100, Hitachi Energy (-5%), SAIL (-4.5%), Adani Total Gas (-4.2%), Cummins India (-4.1%) and Aditya Birla Capital (-3.9%) were the main laggards.

On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra Finance (8.8%), Tata Elxsi (7.6%) and Bharti Hexacom (6.5%) were the top gainers.

On the Nifty Smallcap 100, Ola Electric (-6.3%), Tejas Networks (-6.3%), Cholamandalam Financial Holdings (-5.6%), Afcons Infrastructure (-5%), and Navin Fluorine International (-4.5%) led the losers’ pack.

In contrast, Reliance Power (11.7%), Aegis Vopak Terminals (4.5%) and Sagility (4.4%) were the top winners on the index.