Top Nifty gainers and losers at mid-day: Bajaj Auto, Eicher gain; ICICI, JSW drop

Bulls took a breather after rallying for days as the Indian benchmark indices traded lower ahead of Japan’s monetary policy decision. At 12:20pm, the Sensex was down 137.85 points or 0.19 percent at 71,345.90, and the Nifty was down 29.50 points or 0.14 percent at 21,427.20. About 1,996 shares advanced, 1,292 shares declined, and 120 shares traded unchanged.

Bajaj Auto Ltd: Shares of the two-wheeler and three-wheeler major gained nearly 3 percent to Rs 6,447. Volumes were high as 6 lakh shares changed hands, topping the one-month and one-week average of 5 lakh shares. The surge comes after the stock fell nearly 1 percent in the previous trading sessions.

Sun Pharmaceuticals Ltd: Shares of the pharma major gained 2.4 percent to Rs 1,265 on December 18, extending gains for the second trading session in a row. Recently, the company recalled 96,192 bottles of Liothyronine Sodium Tablets in the US that are used to treat an underactive thyroid, according to the latest enforcement report issued by the USFDA.

Eicher Motors Ltd: Shares of the Royal Enfield maker gained 1.3 percent to Rs 4,116 on December 18. The surges come after it fell over a percent in the previous trading session. Volumes were low as 5 lakh shares changed hands as against the one-month average of 9 lakh shares.

Reliance Industries Ltd: Shares of the Nifty heavy-weight gained 1.4 percent to Rs 2,530, rallying for the fourth trading session in a row. About 42 lakh shares changed hands, lower than the one-week average of 69 lakh shares.

HCL Tech Ltd: Shares of IT major gained 1.2 percent to Rs 1,508, rallying for the third day in a row. The surge comes after the US signalled a pause on interest rates, and suggested the envisioned inflation of 2-4 percent could be reached before initial estimates.

Power Grid Corp Ltd: Shares of the company fell 1.8 percent to Rs 233, becoming the top loser on the index. The drop comes after investors rushed to book profits after the stock climbed over 2 percent in the previous trading session.

ICICI Bank Ltd: Shares of the private lender fell almost 2 percent to Rs 1,019 on December 18, snapping its two-day gaining streak on the bourses. Volumes were low as 38 lakh shares changed hands, significantly lower than the 1-week average of 1 crore shares.

JSW Steel Ltd: Shares of India’s leading steel maker fell 1.6 percent to Rs 853 on December 18. This comes after a first information report (FIR) was filed against JSW Group Chairman Sajjan Jindal by a 30-year old woman accusing him of rape. The assault allegedly took place at JSW Group’s head office at Bandra Kurla Complex on January 24, 2022.

ITC Ltd: Shares of the FMCG major declined over a percent to Rs 451 on Decemebr 18. The drop comes after British American Tobacco, ITC’s largest shareholder, indicated that it would be open to trimming its 29.02 percent stake in the cigarettes-to-hotels conglomerate.

Coal India Ltd: Shares of the PSU fell 1.3 percent to Rs 345 on December 18, snapping its two-day gaining streak on the bourses. About 52 lakh shares changed hands as against the 1-week average of 1 crore shares.