The domestic equity benchmarks traded near the flat line with some negative bias in early afternoon trade amid mixed global cues. The Nifty traded below the 22,550 mark. Media shares declined after advancing for the previous trading sessions. Trading was volatile due to the monthly Nifty50 F&O series expiry today.
At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, shed 4.09 points or 0.01% to 74.594.34. The Nifty 50 index fell 20.30 points or 0.09% to 22,527.25.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.22%, and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 2.12%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 962 shares rose and 2,771 shares fell. A total of 166 shares were unchanged.
Derivatives:
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, declined 2.38% to 13.39. The Nifty 27 February 2025 futures were trading at 22,545.65, at a premium of 18.4 points as compared with the spot at 22,527.25.
The Nifty option chain for the 27 February 2025 expiry showed a maximum call OI of 341.9 lakh contracts at the 22,600 strike price. Maximum put OI of 247 lakh contracts was seen at 22,500 strike price.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Media index shed 2.39% to 1,454.50. The index added 0.84% in the past trading session.
PVR Inox (down 4.28%), Tips Music (down 3.51%), Network 18 Media & Investments (down 2.75%), Saregama India (down 2.6%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (down 2.58%), Dish TV India (down 2.36%), Den Networks (down 1.51%), Hathway Cable & Datacom (down 1.08%), Nazara Technologies (down 0.38%), and Sun TV Network (down 0.32%) declined.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Adani Green Energy rose 0.12%. The company announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Adani Saur Urja (LA), has received a letter of award (LoA) from Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation (UPPCL) for 1,250 MW of energy storage capacity.
Newgen Software Technologies advanced 2.43% after the company announced that its material subsidiary, Newgen Software Inc. (NSI), incorporated in the USA, has executed a Statement of Work (SoW) with a USA-based client.
Zydus Lifesciences shed 0.82%. The company announced the launch of VaxiFlu-4, India's first quadrivalent influenza vaccine, for the 2025 southern hemisphere season.
Lemon Tree Hotels shed 0.27%. The company announced that it has signed a license agreement viz. Lemon Tree Resort, Shirdi, Maharashtra.