Equity markets on Wednesday turned sharply lower in fag-end dragged by IT, financial, and pharma shares after trading range-bound for most part of the day.

Breaking their six-day winning streak, Sensex closed down 434.31 points, or 0.59 per cent, at 72,623.09 while Nifty was down 141.90 points, or 0.64 per cent, at 22,055.05.

Sensex had climbed to a high of 73,267.80, but erased the gains in a day marked with muted movement and volatile trade while the Nifty had climbed to an intraday high of 22,249.40.

All major indices were in the red, barring Realty, PSU Bank, Metal and FMCG. Media, IT, Oil & Gas indices emerged as the biggest losers. Nifty Bank closed 0.16 per cent down.

Notably, the Bank Nifty fell less compared to Nifty which was down nearly 75 points. The Bank Nifty faced resistance from the gap area formed on the 17th Jan in the range 47,200 – 48,000.

After a period of relative underperformance compared to the frontline indices in recent months, the Bank Nifty index has stabilised around the 200-day EMA level. It has formed a Symmetrical Triangle pattern on the daily scale.

The Midcap and Smallcap index closed down more than 1 per cent, indicating the weakness in the broader market.

Tata Steel, SBI, JSW Steel, IndusInd Bank and ICICI Bank were the top gainers on Sensex.

BPCL, Coal India, NTPC, Power Grid Corp., and HDFC life were the top losers on Nifty.

The rupee consolidated in a narrow range and appreciated 1 paisa to close at 82.96 against the US dollar. The support from easing crude oil prices was negated by a weak trend in domestic equities.

Asian stocks were mixed Wednesday after technology shares led Wall Street broadly lower on Tuesday, with investors waiting for chipmaker Nvidia’s quarterly earnings report.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost nearly 0.2 per cent to 38,300.00 while the Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 2.4 per cent to 16,642.00, driven by gains in its Tech Index, which advanced 3.6%. The Shanghai Composite rose nearly 2.0 per cent to 2,979.30.

Further, the MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.62 per cent, touching their highest in seven weeks.