Profit booking in Reliance, drop in financials weigh on Indian shares

BENGALURU (Reuters): Indian shares fell on Tuesday as financials, led by Bajaj Finance, dragged the market, while profit booking in index heavyweights Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank ensued following a surge in the previous session.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 (.NSEI) index declined 0.99% to 21,522.10 points and the S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) fell 1.11% to 71,139.90.

Both the benchmarks had risen about 1.8% on Monday to log their best session in eight weeks.

“The slide today is obviously due to profit booking in index heavyweights (Reliance and HDFC Bank (HDBK.NS) as well as across the market after Monday’s surge,” said Sanjiv Hota, vice president and head of research at Sharekhan.

Reliance Industries (RELI.NS) fell 2.79%, dragging the energy index (.NIFTYENR) down 1.69%.

Shares of the oil-to-telecom conglomerate had surged 7.02% to a record high in the previous session.

Top private lender HDFC Bank, which gained 1.38% on Monday, dropped 0.71%. HDFC Bank and Reliance together have a weightage of 22.72% on Nifty 50.

The highest-weighted sector financials (.NIFTYFIN) dropped 0.63%.

Bajaj Finance <BJFN.NS> declined 5.21% to hit a five-month low and was the top Nifty 50 loser. The company posted a smaller-than-expected rise in quarterly profit, while its asset quality deteriorated.

Hota expected heightened volatility to prevail in the near term, ahead of key events such as the US Federal Reserve’s policy decision and commentary on Wednesday, as well as India’s interim union budget on Thursday.

The Nifty volatility index (.NIFVIX) jumped 16.14% in two sessions this week, to a 10-month high of 16.10.

Fed commentary will provide cues into the rate path, influence foreign investor strategy and the near-term trajectory of the markets, according to three analysts.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL.NS) gained 2.34% on the day, extending a post-results rally into the second session.