The Nifty 50 index, a benchmark for NSE, experienced significant selling pressure on January 21, dropping below the 23,000 level for the first time since June. The index hit an intraday low of 22,976.85 before closing at 23,024.65, down 320.10 points or 1.4%. This decline followed Donald Trump's inauguration and his announcement of trade tariffs on neighboring countries, fueling global trade uncertainties and dampening investor sentiment.
Out of 50 Nifty stocks, 41 declined, 9 advanced, and 1 remained unchanged. Key gainers included Apollo Hospital, Tata Consumer, BPCL, Shriram, and JSW Steel, with gains ranging from 0.5% to 2.13%. On the other hand, Trent, NTPC, Adani Ports, ICICI Bank, and Adani Enterprises were top laggards, falling between 2.8% and 6%.
Broader market indices also faced significant losses, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 dropping 2.3% each. All sectoral indices ended in red, with Nifty Consumer Durables and Nifty Realty seeing the steepest declines, down more than 4%. Bank Nifty, Nifty Auto, Nifty Financial, and others registered declines of 1% to 2%.
Market expert Vatsal Bhuva of LKP Securities noted that Nifty opened positively but faced selling pressure near its 14-day EMA, closing with a bearish candlestick pattern. Dr. Ravi Singh of Religare Broking attributed the market's weakness to uncertainties in global trade dynamics triggered by Trump's tariff announcements.
India’s volatility index surged by 4%, reflecting heightened caution among investors. Analysts are eyeing support levels around 22,500, with resistance anticipated near 23,300 in the coming sessions.
