Mumbai, March 4 Indian stock markets closed a tad lower on Tuesday, with both the Sensex and Nifty settling in negative territory following US trade tariffs on Canada and Mexico coming into force from today.
Canada's retaliatory tariffs on US goods further dampened market sentiment.
The 30-share Sensex ended the day at 72,989.93, losing 96 points, or 0.13 per cent, from its previous close. Throughout the day, the index traded between 73,033.18 and 72,633.54.
The Nifty also ended lower, closing at 22,082.65, down by 36.65 points, or 0.17 per cent in the intra-day trade.
During the trading session, the index reached a high of 22,105.05 and a low of 21,964.60.
In the broader market, the Nifty Smallcap100 index rose by 0.69 per cent, while the Nifty Midcap100 gained slightly by 0.05 per cent.
Out of the 50 stocks that make up the Nifty, 28 settled lower, with notable declines seen in stocks such as Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Finserv, HCL Tech, and Eicher Motors, which lost up to 4.95 per cent.
However, 22 stocks showed gains, with Adani Enterprises, State Bank of India (SBI), BPCL, Bharat Electronics, and Shriram Finance rising by up to 3.03 per cent.
Sectoral performance was mixed, with sectors like PSU Bank, Bank Nifty, financial services, consumer durables, media, metal, oil & gas, and realty indices seeing gains of up to 2.37 per cent.
On the other hand, sectors such as Nifty Auto, IT, Pharma, and FMCG saw losses, with declines extending up to 1.31 per cent.
The Nifty Private Bank index also saw a marginal decline of 0.08 per cent.
"The recent decline in small and midcap stocks reflects profit booking following a strong rally, compounded by global market uncertainties,” said Abhishek Jaiswal, Fund Manager at Finavenue.
He added that while short-term volatility is inevitable, the broader fundamentals of quality midcap companies remain robust, supported by India's strong economic growth and ongoing structural reforms.
Investors should prioritise businesses with solid balance sheets and sustainable earnings growth rather than reacting to transient market fluctuations, said Jaiswal.
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