Diwali's special Muhurat trading sees Sensex, Nifty make minor dips

MUMBAI: Diwali brings with it the special Muhurat trading session of the Indian stock markets. The BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty however registered minor losses in the Muhurat session on Thursday evening.

The Muhrat trading opened at 6:30 pm and closed at 7:30 pm. The BSE's session was kickstarted by Bollywood actress Richa Chadda, who kicked it off by striking a gong. The ceremonial session is held to mark the beginning of the Hindu Samvat year 2074.

The 30-stock benchmark Sensex shed about 194 points or 0.6 percent to close at 32,390. Banking stocks led the fall, as participants booked profits to write their year's first entry with gains, brokers said. The Sensex saw 26 stocks fall.

The broader NSE Nifty too dropped 64 points, or 0.63 percent, to close below the 10,200 mark. The 50-stock index saw 43 stocks decline.

At the end of the ceremonial profit-booking sale, brokers say global cues fuelled a bit of selling. Frankfurt's DAX fell 0.63 percent, while Paris CAC 40 shed 0.54 percent. London's FTSE too fell 0.35 percent. In the Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.92 percent, Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.34 percent, while Japan's Nikkei ended 0.40 percent higher.

Both the BSE and the NSE will be closed on Friday for 'Diwali Balipratipada'.

(With inputs from PTI)