Sensex, Nifty tank nearly 1% on selloff in banking, IT stocks

Equity indices Sensex and Nifty drop nearly 1% as investors sell bank and IT stocks before earnings season.

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty buckled under selling pressure to settle nearly 1% lower on Friday (January 3, 2025) as investors pared exposure to bank and IT stocks ahead of the earnings season starting next week.

“A depreciating rupee against the U.S. dollar further weighed on sentiment,” traders said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 720.60 points or 0.90% to close at 79,223.11 despite a positive beginning. During the day, it slumped 833.98 points or 1.04% to 79,109.73.

The NSE Nifty tanked 183.90 points or 0.76% to 24,004.75.

From the Sensex pack, Zomato, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma, Larsen & Toubro, HCL Tech and ITC were the major laggards.

On the other hand, Tata Motors, Nestle, Titan, Hindustan Unilever and Reliance Industries were among the gainers.

In Asian markets, Seoul and Hong Kong settled in the positive territory while Shanghai ended lower. Japanese markets were closed for the New Year holiday.