Nifty Gives Up 13,500 As Markets Break Record-Breaking Run

Stock Market Updates: Losses in financial and IT shares pulled the markets lower.

The Sensex closed 143.62 points, or 0.31 per cent, lower at 45,959.88, following five consecutive days of gain, and the Nifty settled at 13,478.30, down 50.80 points, or 0.38 per cent, from its previous close. (Track Sensex , Nifty Here)
UPL, UltraTech Cement, Shree Cement, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra, closing between 2.42 per cent and 11.29 per cent lower, were the worst hit among 30 laggards in the Nifty basket of 50 shares.
On the other hand, Nestle, ITC, Britannia, Hindustan Unilever and Adani Ports, finishing with gains of between 1.70 per cent and 4.16 per cent higher, were the top gainers in the index.
HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and Infosys were the biggest drags on Sensex. HUL and ITC were the largest supports. (Also Read: Reliance Industries, IRCTC, Maruti Suzuki, ICICI Prudential In Focus)
Both indices have registered record highs in 14 of the last 21 sessions and are up around 4 per cent so far this month, mainly driven by hopes of a COVID-19 vaccine and foreign fund inflows.
Broader markets took a breather, with the Nifty Midcap 100 index ending 0.83 per cent lower following a rally that lasted nine straight days. Mid-cap shares have outperformed the blue-chip indices so far this year.
"Indications are in the favour of some consolidation in the index and it would be healthy for the markets... Defensives such as FMCG, IT and pharma tend to do well during the corrective phase," said Ajit Mishra, VP-research at Religare Broking.
Meanwhile, the country's drug regulator said on Wednesday that it needed more data to make a decision on emergency authorisation for vaccines developed by AstraZeneca and Bharat Biotech.
Analysts also awaited macroeconomic data for near-term cues. According to a poll by news agency Reuters, consumer inflation likely stood at 7.10 per cent in November, but remained above the Reserve Bank of India's target amid high food and petrol prices. Official data is due on Monday.
Asian equities also inched away from record highs and the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.34 per cent lower at the last count on uncertainty about US stimulus and after Britain's medicine regulator issued an anaphylaxis warning on Pfizer's vaccine following some adverse reactions.