Markets snap 9-day losing streak; Sensex up 227 pts, Nifty ends at 11,222

The benchmark indices snapped their nine-day losing streak, on the back of buying in beaten-down blue chip stocks once investors judged recent losses as excessive. 

The Sensex rose 227 points, 0.61 per cent, to close at 37,319 after giving up nearly 2,000 points in the previous nine sessions. The Nifty rose 74 points, or 0.66 per cent, to close at 11,222, with nearly two-thirds of its components gaining. 

Gains in the European markets and US futures helped with the sentiment.  The trading session, however, saw huge volatility, with the Sensex swinging 617 points and fluctuating between gains and losses for the most part of the day. The India VIX, a gauge for market volatility, remained above 27, a three-year high. Experts said the markets will continue being volatile ahead of the election results next week.

“The Nifty had fallen for nine sessions and was anyway due for a bounce. Ahead of elections, the movements will be sharp in either direction. Small buy-and-sell orders swing the market in a big way,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.

The correction in the market was trigged by the flare-up in US-China trade tensions and exacerbated by concerns around the health of the domestic economic. “The market got some respite after many days of consolidation due to expectation of ease in trade tensions between US and China, as the US president sounds optimistic about the upcoming meeting. Short-covering was seen in beaten-down indices like banks and pharma,” said Vinod Nair, head (research), Geojit Financial Services.

Overseas investors continued to aggressively pull money out of domestic stocks. On Tuesday, foreign portfolio investors sold shares worth Rs 2,012 crore, while domestic institutions provided buying support worth Rs 2,243 crore. 

In the past four sessions, overseas investors have sold shares worth over Rs 4,000 crore.

Experts said it is likely that some large FPIs could be liquidating their holdings, given the sharp fall in several large-cap stocks.