Sensex ends lower on profit-taking ahead of Tuesday’s India/ US CPI data

The Sensex 30, one of India’s key benchmark indices, corrected on Monday to settle sharply lower.

The Indian stock index suffered amid declines in global stock markets and heavy losses in the banking sector stocks. Traders are in a risk-averse position, refraining from placing any fresh bets on risky assets ahead of Tuesday’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation data from India and the US.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex 30 ended 0.83% lower on the day near 73,500.

Stock market news

• The top gainers on Sensex were Nestle, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj FinServ and ITC. Meanwhile, the top losers included SBI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Tata Steel, Power Grid and HDFC Bank.
• Several Tata stocks fell up to 10% as Tata Sons IPO looks unlikely. The company seems to be exploring other options to adhere to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) norms.
• Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred JM Financial from acting as lead manager of any public debt issue.
• IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal likely to sell a higher stake of 5.8%, looks to raise Rs 6,600 crore.
• The US stock markets ended in the red on Friday, as investors resorted to profit-taking amid high valuations and gearing up for the critical US inflation report.
• On Friday, the headline NFP rose by 275K in February, compared to market forecasts of 200K while the January figure of 353K was revised down to 229K, a difference of 124K. 
• Markets are currently pricing in about a 75% chance that the Fed could begin easing rates in June, higher than a 63% probability seen last Thursday, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
• The main event risks for markets this week will be the inflation data releases from India and the US.