Benchmark stock market indices opened the trading session on a negative note, continuing their downward trend as foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continue to sell their holdings.
The S&P BSE Sensex was down 197.45 points to 77,114.35 at 9:29 a.m., while the NSE Nifty50 fell 62.90 points to 23,318.70. All of the other broader market indices were trading in the negative.
Major sectoral indices, such as Nifty Bank and Nifty Financial Services, were trading lower; Nifty IT was the only index trading in the green, albeit marginally.
The top five Nifty50 gainers were Adani Enterprises, Grasim, Hindalco, Infosys, and Tata Consumer Products.
Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, stated, "The significant trend in the ongoing bearish phase of the market is the outperformance of largecaps over the broader market." While the Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices are down 8.6% and 11.3%, respectively, year to date, the Nifty is only down 1.52%. This outperformance is likely to continue in the future."
"FIIs' relentless selling in largecaps has made their valuations fair, while mid- and small-cap valuations remain excessive. FIIs will undoubtedly become buyers in India, but only when the dollar index weakens. We know it will happen, but we're not sure when.
What investors should do now is buy quality largecaps in banking, IT, autos, pharmaceuticals, and capital goods and wait patiently," he said.
"When foreign institutional investors (FIIs) become buyers in India, which is unavoidable, they will purchase the largecap stocks that they are currently selling. For patient investors, this is an excellent opportunity."
