Equity benchmark indices declined in early trade on Monday after rallying in the past two straight sessions amid weak trends from the US markets and selling in banking stocks.
After a record-breaking rally, the 30-share BSE Sensex went lower by 204.64 points to 73,914.75 due to profit taking. The Nifty slipped 49.15 points to 22,444.40.
Among the Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Infosys, and Tata Motors were the major laggards.
Bajaj Finserv, UltraTech Cement, ITC, and Bajaj Finance were among the gainers.
In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo were quoting lower, while Hong Kong and Shanghai traded in the green territory The US markets ended in the negative territory on Friday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.68 per cent to USD 81.52 a barrel.
The stock markets were closed on Friday for Mahashivratri.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 7,304.11 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
"The dominant trend in the market in the near-term is likely to be the underperformance of the broader market, particularly the small-cap space.
"Since restraint imposed by some mutual funds by stopping lump sum investment into their small-cap schemes has failed to stem the flow of funds into the over valued small-cap segment, SEBI has stepped in with regulatory action asking the mutual funds to do stress tests in their mid and small-cap schemes.
"Since the market is scaling new highs consistently, the undertone of the market remains bullish and, therefore, investors should remain invested. Large caps are likely to witness buying on dips while the broader market will face headwinds," V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said.
On Thursday, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 33.40 points or 0.05 per cent to settle at a new peak of 74,119.39, while the broader Nifty rose by 19.50 points or 0.09 per cent to close at a record 22,493.55.
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