Market Watch: Why did D-Street succumb to last hour selloff?

Last-hour selling sends Sensex 465 points lower
Maruti slices production as lockdowns hit sales
India’s total Covid cases cross 20 million-mark
Fuel prices hiked after 18-day break
Goldman cuts India’s FY22 growth forecast

Let us take a quick glance at what happened on the Dalal Street today.

A late selloff surprised many investors on Tuesday. Benchmark indices, holding gains for most of the session, surrendered as bank stocks erased gains, while selling in Reliance shares intensified. At close, Nifty50 was below the psychological mark of 14,500. Sensex, which was just a few points away from reclaiming the 49,000-mark earlier in the day, lost 465 points to close at 48,250-odd level. Twenty one of 30 Sensex stocks ended lower. Reliance Industries, the HDFC twins, Infosys and ICICI Bank were the five stocks hurting the index most by falling 1-2 per cent. ONGC and Bajaj Finance added 1 per cent each. TCS, SBI and Kotak Bank settled in the black. The day saw 292 stocks hitting their 52-week highs earlier, before the late selloff ruined the broader market sentiment.

We have with us Ajit Mishra of Religare Securities to share his views on the market.

Welcome to the show, sir.

1) What led to the late selloff on Tuesday?
2) Do you think surprises are missing this earnings season and Covid-led downgrades are imminent?

We also caught up with Rohit Singre of Nirmal Bang Securities to decode the technical charts for you.

1) Nifty has been volatile and has been trading in a wide range of late. How would you see it?
2) What are key levels to watch out for Nifty Bank?

China and Japanese markets were closed for the day. Other Asian markets ended largely mixed for the day. European markets were also trading mixed in the first few hours of trade. US stock futures were hinting at a flat start to US equities later in the day.

That’s all for now. Do check out ETMarkets.com for all the news, market analysis, investment strategies and dozens of stock recommendations. Enjoy your evening. Bye Bye!