| The key equity indices traded with moderate losses in the mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty traded below the 25,800 level. Investor sentiment remained subdued amid persistent foreign institutional investor (FII) selling while mixed signals from US jobs data kept uncertainty around the Federal Reserve's interest-rate outlook. Market participants also continued to keep an eye on ongoing IPO activity.
Private bank shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.
At 14:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 191.57 points or 0.23% to 84,488.29. The Nifty 50 index fell 60.85 points or 0.24% to 25,799.10.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 0.55% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.81%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,345 shares rose and 2,706 shares fell. A total of 195 shares were unchanged.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty private bank index slipped 0.58% to 28,301.20. The index fell 1.79% in two consecutive trading sessions.
IndusInd Bank (down 1.7%), RBL Bank (down 1.48%), HDFC Bank (down 1.23%), ICICI Bank (down 1.22%), Bandhan Bank (down 1.01%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 0.68%) declined.
On the other hand, Axis Bank (up 0.63%), Federal Bank (up 0.23%) and IDFC First Bank (up 0.07%) edged higher.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper rose 0.12% to 6.581 compared with the previous session close of 6.573.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.3925 compared with its close of 90.9375 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 5 February 2025 settlement slipped 0.10% to Rs 134,273.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.41% to 98.190.
The United States 10-year bond yield added 0.34% to 4.163.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for February 2025 settlement gained 67 cents or 1.10% to $59.57 a barrel.
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