In the month of August, the Nifty 50 has experienced a decline of 1.4%, following a consecutive five-month rally. Despite a day of volatility, the domestic benchmark equity indices managed to close slightly higher on August 16. 

The 30-share BSE Sensex closed on Wednesday at 65,539.42, marking a gain of 137.50 points or 0.2%. Similarly, the Nifty also settled at the 19,465 level, showing an increase of 30.45 points or 0.16%. However, the market sentiment was dampened by declines in metal and financial stocks due to domestic retail price spikes raising caution and concerns about China's economic recovery.

Among the Sensex top gainers were UltraTech Cement (2.44%), NTPC (2.04%), Tata Motors (1.92%), Infosys (1.78%), and Mahindra & Mahindra (1.55%). On the flip side, the top losers included Tata Steel (-1.90%), Bharti Airtel (-1.14%), Bajaj Finserv (-0.86%), Axis Bank (-0.67%), and Bajaj Finance (-0.56%).
For the Nifty 50, the leading gainers were Apollo Hospitals (2.60%), UltraTech Cement (2.37%), NTPC (2.11%), Infosys (1.75%), and Tata Motors (1.72%). Meanwhile, the top losers consisted of Tata Steel (-1.90%), Adani Ports (-1.56%), Hindalco (-1.51%), HDFC Life Insurance (-1.35%), and Bharti Airtel (1.22%).

Recent weeks in the Indian markets have been characterized by notable volatility, influenced by a combination of both domestic and global factors. These factors encompass the strengthening of the US dollar index, a surge in US Treasury 10-year bond yields, foreign institutional investor sell-offs, a significant rise in inflation, and the Indian rupee hitting a historic low against the US Dollar.

The Nifty 50 had maintained a consistent upward trajectory from March to July, resulting in a substantial gain of 14.5%. This period also saw the index reaching an all-time high of 19,991 points. However, the current month has witnessed a decline of 1.4%.

The decline was instigated by IT major Infosys posting weaker-than-expected Q1FY24 results, triggering a downturn that not only affected Infosys but also had a broader impact on other IT stocks.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong closed in negative territory, while European markets mostly traded in the green. Conversely, the US markets concluded lower on Tuesday. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, experienced a marginal increase of 0.01% to reach $84.90 per barrel.

In India, the consumer price index (CPI) inflation surged sharply to a 15-month peak of 7.44% in July 2023, primarily driven by elevated food and vegetable prices. July's CPI reading breached the Reserve Bank of India's upper tolerance limit of 6% for the first time in five months. The consumer food price index (CFPI) for July also surged to 11.51%, marking the highest level since October 2020, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on August 14.

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