Indian stocks dive at opening bell: Sensex-Nifty start trading day in red territory

Mumbai: The stock market commenced trading on a negative note on Monday, with both the Sensex and Nifty opening in the red.

The Sensex dipped 152.66 points, starting the day at 72,990.14, while the Nifty was down 51.55 points, opening at 22,161.15. Market sentiment remained subdued as 16 Nifty companies advanced while 34 declined.

Leading the gainers on the Nifty were Power Grid, Cipla, Dr Reddy, Adani Enterprises, and LT, while Asian Paints, Titan, HDFC Life, LTIMindtree, and Tech Mahindra emerged as the top losers.

Varun Aggarwal, founder and managing director, Profit Idea, said, "Despite the negative opening, the Nifty 50's near-term uptrend remains intact, with analysts foreseeing a minor dip in the upcoming week, potentially presenting a buy-on-dips opportunity. Immediate support for the Nifty is anticipated at 22,040 levels. Options data indicates significant call open interest at 22,300 and 22,500 strikes, with notable put open interest at 22,200 and 22,000 strikes".

Turning to global markets, the US stock market saw a mixed session on Friday, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 experiencing slight declines while the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged higher.

The US Dollar Index traded marginally up at 103.97. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude prices witnessed marginal declines, trading at USD 76.32 and USD 81.48, respectively.

In Asia-Pacific trading, markets displayed mixed performance, with the Asia Dow up by 0.25 per cent, Nikkei 225 in the green by 0.39 per cent, Hang Seng index down by 0.10 per cent, and Shanghai Composite up by 0.55 per cent.

Providing insight into investor activity, foreign institutional investors purchased shares worth a net Rs 1,276.1 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth a net Rs 176.7 crore on February 23, 2023, according to NSE data.

As the trading day progresses, market participants will closely monitor developments, both domestically and globally, for cues on market direction and investor sentiment.