Sensex nosedives 600 points on Diwali day; HCLTech, Infosys, TCS bleeds

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Sensex Drops 550 Points to 79,400, Nifty at 24,200; IT, FMCG, Financials Drag

Stock Market Live: The BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 indices are trading lower on the final trading session of Samvat 2080, influenced by mixed global cues.

Share Market Today: Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) net sold Indian equities worth Rs 4,613.65 crore on Wednesday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) net bought equities worth Rs 4,518.28 crore on October 30.

As of 1 PM, the BSE Sensex had fallen 529.57 points (0.66%) to 79,412.61, while the Nifty 50 was down 138.05 points (0.57%) to 24,202.80.

In the afternoon session, only five stocks out of the 30 constituents of the BSE Sensex were trading with gains. Larsen & Toubro led the gains with a 6.87% rise, followed by JSW Steel, Sun Pharma, Power Grid Corp., and Tata Steel. On the losing side, Tech Mahindra was down 4.78%, followed by HCLTech, Infosys, TCS, and Maruti Suzuki India.

On the Nifty 50, 13 out of 50 stocks were trading higher. Cipla led the gains with a 9.71% increase, followed by Larsen & Toubro, Hero MotoCorp, ONGC, and Dr. Reddy's. Tech Mahindra, down 4.17%, led the losses, followed by HCLTech, Shriram Finance, TCS, and Infosys.

Across sectors, the Pharma, Healthcare, and Media indices were the only ones trading higher, while all other sectoral indices were down. The IT index dropped the most at 3.23%, followed by the FMCG index at 1.03%. The Bank Nifty and Financial Services indices were down 0.27% and 0.46%, respectively.

In broader markets, the Nifty Smallcap 100 was up 0.37%, defying the overall trend, while the Nifty Midcap 100 was down 0.60%.

On Wednesday, the BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 had ended a two-day winning streak, closing in the red amid mixed global cues. The BSE Sensex dropped 426.85 points (0.53%) to 79,942.18, and the Nifty 50 fell 125.99 points (0.51%) to 24,340.85.

In broader markets, small-cap stocks outperformed, with the Nifty Smallcap 100 index rising by 1.05%, while the Nifty Midcap 100 index fell by 0.16%. Sectoral indices were mixed, with the Nifty FMCG, Media, Metal, and Auto indices ending higher. The Media index rose by 2.34%, and the FMCG index increased by 0.92%.

Data released by India's Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Wednesday showed that the output of eight key infrastructure industries — known as the core sector — grew by 2% year-on-year in September, recovering from a contraction in the previous month.