Nifty ends in red as investors sit on sidelines

New Delhi, March 26 (SocialNews.XYZ) Nifty traded in negative territory throughout the session to close with a loss of 75 points at 22,021, Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, has said.

Broader market, however, outperformed with Nifty Midcap and Smallcap 100 up 1 per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively.

Sector-wise it was a mixed bag with buying seen in realty, oil & gas, and consumer durables.

Shortened trading week, the derivatives monthly expiry along with global economic data to be released this week has kept the investors on the sidelines, he said.

"Overall, we expect the market to consolidate in a broader range, however, buying in a broader market before the financial year-end cannot be ruled out," he said.

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said aligned with global trends, the domestic market sustained its consolidation pattern, ending close to 22,000.

While key data such as US GDP and inflation during the week may provide some clues on future rate cut paths, the fiscal year-ending truncated week, coupled with reduced trading volumes and monthly expiry, are likely to contribute to volatility.

Generally, midcaps are performing well post the consolidation of the last 2-3 weeks, while the IT sector continued to experience sluggishness following weak global IT spending forecasts, he said.

Vaibhav Vidwani, Research Analyst, Bonanza Portfolio said Nifty closed on a negative note at 22,004 down by 0.42 per cent whereas, Sensex closed at 72,470 down by 0.50 per cent.

Bharti Hexacom, a telephone and internet services provider and a Bharti Airtel subsidiary, is prepared to enter the primary market with a Rs 4,275-crore offering.

Source: IANS