In afternoon trading on Thursday, Indian equity markets saw further declines, with the benchmark Sensex dropping 298.40 points or 0.38 per cent to 77,972.88, while the broader Nifty fell 96 points or 0.41 per cent to 23,600.30 as of 12:35 PM.
The market breadth remained positive, with 1,952 stocks advancing against 1,790 declines on the BSE. Additionally, 53 stocks hit their 52-week highs, while 55 touched their 52-week lows. Sectoral indices also witnessed losses, with the Nifty Bank, Nifty Financial Services, and Nifty Midcap Select index all trading in the red.
ITC Hotels emerged as the top gainer among Nifty stocks, followed by Cipla and BPCL. On the downside, Titan Company, ONGC, and Shriram Finance led the losses. Trading volumes remained healthy, indicating active market participation.
The Nifty Next 50 also saw a decline of 229.95 points or 0.36 per cent. Despite the overall negative trend, the total number of stocks traded on BSE stood at 3,904. The cautious sentiment continued throughout the session. The market performance reflected a mix of gains and losses among different stocks, with some sectors experiencing sharper declines than others.
