New Delhi: Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty recovered most of their early losses on Monday as gains in State Bank of India (SBI), Reliance Industries and select IT stocks helped offset selling pressure in private banking counters.
The 30-share BSE Sensex initially plunged 470.50 points to 74,318, while the NSE Nifty declined 147.10 points to 22,999.05.
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However, buying in select index heavyweights helped the markets rebound sharply. The Sensex subsequently traded just 46.49 points lower at 74,682.78, while the Nifty narrowed its losses to 14.55 points at 23,131.60.
Axis Bank emerged as the biggest laggard among Sensex constituents, falling more than 4 percent despite reporting a 39.4 percent increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 7,704.67 crore for the September quarter of FY27.
The bank's earnings were supported by stronger core income and improved asset quality, but the results failed to prevent selling pressure in its shares.
HDFC Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finserv, Hindustan Unilever and Trent also traded lower.
In contrast, SBI, UltraTech Cement, Reliance Industries, Tata Consultancy Services, Adani Ports and HCL Technologies provided support to the benchmarks.
Market sentiment received a boost after Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned net buyers on Friday, ending a prolonged selling streak. Exchange data showed foreign investors purchased equities worth Rs 1,165.92 crore.
The renewed inflows helped cushion the impact of selling in banking stocks, although broader market sentiment remained cautious.
Asian markets presented a mixed picture, with South Korea's Kospi and China's Shanghai Composite trading higher, while Japan's Nikkei 225 remained under pressure.
Global crude oil prices declined, with Brent crude falling 1.90 percent to USD 107.8 per barrel.
Meanwhile, weak overnight cues from Wall Street weighed on investor sentiment. On Friday, the Nasdaq Composite plunged 2.14 percent, the S&P 500 declined 1.09 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.34 percent.
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Indian equities had closed the previous session with solid gains, supported by buying in technology and other heavyweight stocks.
The Sensex advanced 413.66 points, or 0.56 percent, to settle at 74,729.27, while the Nifty gained 148.80 points, or 0.65 percent, to close at 23,146.15.
Monday's recovery indicated buying interest at lower levels, although weakness in major banking stocks continued to restrict the benchmarks' upward movement.
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