NIFTY50 slips below 24,000 to four-month low, dragged down by Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank

The Indian equity benchmark indices started the week with modest gains. However, soon after the market opened, selling pressure was seen, and as the day progressed, selling pressure intensified, pushing the NIFTY50 index below the critical psychological level of 24,000. This drop marks the NIFTY50’s sharpest decline in the last month, hitting an intraday low of 23,816.15 – a new four-month low. Likewise, the SENSEX has plunged 1.61%, falling below the 78,500 mark. Meanwhile, the India VIX has surged 8%, climbing above the level of 17.

With Monday’s sharp fall, the NIFTY50 index is now trading below its important short-term moving averages: the 20, 50, and 100-day averages. Moreover, the 20-DMA has shown a steep decline. It was already below the 50-DMA, and on Monday, it crossed below the 100-DMA as well.

On the sectoral front, Nifty Oil & Gas (-3.08%) led the losses, closely followed by Nifty Media (-2.91%). Broader markets also faced selling pressure, as the Nifty Smallcap 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 indices declined by 1.53% and 2.20%, respectively. Market breadth was weak, with 2,039 stocks declining and only 317 stocks advancing.