Sensex ends in red on Interim Budget day

Mumbai, Feb 1 : The domestic market was marginally disappointed by lower than expected infra spending in the Interim Budget, Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said on Thursday.

However, the government's commitment to fiscal prudence, targeting a fiscal deficit of 5.1 per cent for FY25BE, is expected to improve the outlook on economic ratings. This led to a significant drop in India's 10-year yield by 100 bps to 7.04 per cent, reflecting optimism due to lower-than-expected government borrowing, Nair said.

The Nifty 50 fell 67 points to hit an intra-day low of 21,658.75 before ending 28 points, or 0.13 per cent, lower at 21,697.45, while the Sensex fell 177 points to hit an intra-day low of 71,574.89 before ending 107 points, or 0.15 per cent, down at 71,645.30.

Meanwhile, the US Fed's decision to maintain rates without clear guidance on future cuts dampened market sentiments, Nair added.

Vaibhav Vidwani, Research Analyst at Bonanza Portfolio, said that the Nifty PSU Bank was the sector which outperformed on Thursday, up by 3.11 per cent, even as most of the other sector closed in red.

The top gainers on the Nifty were Maruti, PowerGrid, Cipla, SBI Life, and Eicher Motor, while Grasim, L&T, Ultratech Cement, Dr. Reddy's, JSW Steel, and Titan were the top losers.