Indian stock markets shed early morning gains to end with losses on Tuesday as profit-booking and forecast of a "close call" on Britain's exit (Brexit) from the European Union closer to the June 23 deadline resulted in sentiments remaining subdued.
Shares of SpiceJet, Jet Airways and IndiGo-parent Interglobe Aviation fell on Tuesday after rallying sharply the previous day in response to liberalised foreign direct investment (FDI) norms for the civil aviation sector. Interglobe was down 3.09 percent, Jet Airways lost 1.53 percent and SpiceJet ended 3.25 percent lower on the BSE.
The BSE S&P Sensex shed 54 points to close at 26,813 while the 50-scrip NSE Nifty ended 19 points lower at 8,220. Top Sensex losers included NTPC, Adani Ports and Axis Bank while ONGC Mahindra & Mahindra and Wipro ended with marginal gains in the range of 0.70 percent to 1.70 percent.
"We will go into the vote without high confidence in predicting the outturn in either direction," JPMorgan researcher Malcolm Barr said in a research note to clients titled "Brexit polling update: It's close", reported CNBC-TV18.
Hindalco was the biggest gainer on NSE and closed 1.82 percent higher at Rs. 123.25. On the BSE, the Adityla Birla Group company hit a 52-week high of Rs.124.60 before closing at Rs.123.25. Prospects for Hindalco are expected to be bullish over the next few years.
Monday's trading surprised market watchers who had predicted the Sensex to correct sharply in response to RBI governor Raghuram Rajan conveying that a second term for him at the bank was not on the cards.
Sentiments got a boost after the Narendra Modi government liberalised foreign direct investment (FDI) norms in many sectors, including civil aviation, defence and pharmaceuticals.
Domestic institutional investors were net buyers of stocks worth Rs. 724 crore, while foreign institutional investors were net sellers at Rs. 537 crore, according to provisional data provided by the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
However, in the absence of any such trigger, markets corrected on Tuesday, despite opening on a positive note tracking Asian equities.
Among the BSE500 stocks, Bombay Dyeing was the top gainer at Rs. 48.20 (up 8.19 percent), followed by Trident and Gati.
