Nifty Falls for Third Consecutive Day as Banking and Auto Stocks Weigh; Market Breadth Turns Negative
On Tuesday, May 20, India's benchmark indices ended lower as losses in financial stocks outweighed the modest gains in information technology and metal sectors.
The Nifty 50 slipped 1.05%, while the Sensex dropped 1.06%. This marks the third consecutive session where the markets traded within a narrow range due to a lack of fresh catalysts. Investors are now closely watching developments around India-U.S. trade discussions.
China, a major metal consumer, cut its benchmark lending rate for the first time since October, aiming to counter the effects of ongoing trade tensions with the U.S. Tata Steel and Hindalco rose 0.7%, ranking among the Nifty 50’s top performers.
IT stocks also advanced about 1% during the day, recovering from losses seen in the previous session, which followed a Moody’s downgrade of the U.S. credit outlook. After midday, the Nifty IT index ended in negative territory.
On the stock-specific front, Pfizer rallied 11% to become the top performer in the Nifty 500 index after its Q4 profit surged 85% due to a one-time property sale gain. DLF also jumped 6% following robust demand for its premium real estate offerings, which boosted its January-March earnings.
The Nifty Auto index declined by 2.2% on Tuesday, witnessing the highest intraday fall in the last month. Bajaj-Auto slipped more than 2.5%, the most among the Auto stocks, dragging the Nifty Auto index down.
The key drivers of the index gains were:
On the other hand, these stocks weighed on the index:
The broader market indices ended in the red, with the Mid-cap and Small-cap 100 indices jumping by 1.62% and 0.94%, respectively, while all major sectoral indices ended in the negative territory.
As of May 20, 2025, the Indian stock market witnessed negative market breadth. Out of 2,969 stocks traded on the NSE, 915 advanced, 1,974 declined, and 80 remained unchanged.
A total of 49 stocks touched their 52-week highs, while 18 hit their 52-week lows. Additionally, 117 stocks were locked in their upper circuits, whereas 55 stocks were in lower circuits.
Disclaimer: The article is for informational purposes only and not investment advice.
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