Sensex dips 271 pts, Nifty below 25k; IT dents sentiment; realty, PSBs rise

Stock Market Closing Bell, Monday, May 19, 2025: Indian equity markets made a muted start to the week as benchmark indices settled with losses on Monday. According to analysts, a mixed trend across sectors kept traders busy, with realty, pharma, and auto indices rising, while IT declined by over a percent after a downgrade of the US government’s credit rating by Moody’s, which impacted investor sentiment.

 

The Sensex closed at 82,059.42, down by 271.17 points or 0.33 per cent. The Nifty50 closed at 24,941.3 levels, down by 78.45 points or 0.31 per cent. 

 

However, the broader markets outperformed the benchmarks with sectors. The BSE Midcap index settled 0.27 per cent higher, led by gains in Delhivery (9.97 per cent), RVNL (5.47 per cent), Central Bank of India (5.2 per cent), Supreme Industries (4.75 per cent), Astral (4.72 per cent) and Punjab & Sind Bank (4.07 per cent). Among others, Maharashtra Bank, UCO Bank, Crisil, Phoenix, IPCA Labs, Oberoi Realty, Bank of India, Indian Bank, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail and Jubilant Foods were up in the range of 2 per cent to 4 per cent. 

 

BSE Smallcap rose 0.75 per cent, led by gains in Banco Products (20 per cent), Graphite India (15 per cent), BLS E-Services (13.7 per cent), Themis Medicare (11 per cent), SH Kelkar & Company (9.75 per cent) and NDTV up 8.8 per cent.

 

On the Sectoral front, Nifty IT emerged as top loser down by 1.37 per cent after Moody’s downgraded the US government’s credit rating on Friday. Index constituents including Mphasis, Infosys, Coforge, TCS, Tech Mahindra and Wipro fell up to 2.7 per cent. Among others, Nifty Media, Private Bank, FMCG, Oil & Gas, Consumer Durables closed lower. 

 

Nifty Realty was the top sectoral gainer, followed by PSU Bank, Auto, Pharma, Healthcare, Bank and Metal. 

 

Among Sensex constituents, 20 out of 30 stocks closed with losses. The top laggards included Eternal (formerly Zomato) down by 3,15 per cent, Infosys (-1.92 per cent), TCS (-1.23 per cent), Tech Mahindra (-1.19 per cent) and Reliance Industries down by 1.03 per cent. 

 

After a flat opening, the Nifty oscillated within a narrow range throughout the session and settled near the day’s low at 24,945.45. 

 

Ajit Mishra, senior vice president for research at Religare Broking believes that this intermediate pause in the index, without any significant damage to the overall structure, is a healthy sign. During such phases, traders should adopt a stock-specific approach. Among the key sectors, banking now merits more attention following its recent consolidation phase, as it could lead the next leg of the rally and help the Nifty move towards the 25,200 mark and beyond. 

 

"Meanwhile, other sectors are expected to contribute on a rotational basis. Apart from corporate earnings, global cues and the trend in foreign fund flows will remain key factors to watch," Mishra said. 

Market technical view

According to analysts at Bajaj Broking, the Nifty formed a second consecutive narrow-range bearish candlestick on the daily chart, remaining well within the last Thursday price range, indicating a phase of consolidation for the second session in a row. 

 

"Going forward, we expect the index to hold above the immediate support area 24,800 and head towards the immediate target area 25,200–25,300 in the coming sessions , which represents the measured move target of the recent breakout from the consolidation range of 23,800–24,500," Bajaj Broking said.

 

While the broader trend remains constructive, some consolidation around the 25,200–25,300 levels cannot be ruled out given the sharp up move witnessed in recent sessions. Market participants should continue to focus on stock-specific opportunities as the Q4FY25 earnings season unfolds. On the downside, immediate support is placed at 24,800, whereas the breakout zone around 24,600–24,400, coinciding with last week’s low, is expected to act as a key demand zone and provide strong support in the near term.