The Indian stock market ended the Samvat on a weak note, but a strong rally in the final seven days helped reduce what could have been a much steeper decline. The Nifty closed the Samvat about 4% lower, while the Sensex fell around 5%. Without the sharp recovery in the last week, the picture would have been far worse for investors.
The rally provided some relief after a difficult year for the broader market. However, not all parts of the market performed poorly. Midcap and smallcap indices managed to deliver positive returns for the Samvat. The Nifty Bank also turned positive, helped by the strong gains in the final few days.
Among sectors, pharma was the clear winner, with the Nifty Pharma index rising 24% during the Samvat. Metal stocks also had a strong year, with the sector gaining 23%. PSU banks and media were among the other better-performing sectors. On the other hand, FMCG stocks had a difficult year, with the sector falling 18%.
The Nifty IT index ended the Samvat 7% lower, although a recent recovery helped limit the losses. Realty, PSU stocks and financial services also ended the year in the red. At the stock level, BSE emerged as the top performer on the Nifty, rising 53%.
Shriram Finance, Titan, Adani Ports and Tech Mahindra also delivered strong returns of between 25% and 40%, significantly outperforming the benchmark index. The biggest laggard was ITC, which fell 31% during the Samvat. Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, HDFC Life and Max Healthcare were among the other major losers.
Insurance stocks, in particular, faced pressure, with some names ending the year with losses of more than 20%. Click here to watch the full videoOverall, the final seven-day rally helped cushion the blow for investors. While the headline indices ended the Samvat lower, several sectors and individual stocks still delivered healthy returns, offering investors pockets of opportunity in an otherwise challenging year.