Budget 2024: Indian markets close in the red after interim budget

The Indian stock market gave a thumbs down to the interim budget on Thursday.

The Sensex closed 106.81 points down, settling at 71,645.30. The Nifty, on the other hand, lost 28.20 points to end the day at 21,697.50.

Overall, the interim budget turned out to be a mixed bag. While auto, bank, FMCG and power stocks rose by 0.2 to 0.8 percent, capital goods, metal and realty sectors were down by a percent each.

Last year, both indices rose dramatically before the budget-related excitement fizzled out.

The Sensex closed marginally in the green, rising by 158.18 points. However, the Nifty fell 45 points.

A year earlier, both indices rose on the back of the 'pro-growth' budget. But they pared gained by the time markets closed.

February 1, 2021 was a red-letter day for the stock market as both indices soared after the budget. This budget has been dubbed 'the pandemic budget'.

The Sensex ended the day at 48,600, up 2,000 points. The Nifty rose by 4.74 per cent, adding over 600 points during trading hours.

In a bid to mitigate the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government increased the capital expenditure outlay by 29 per cent compared to 2020-21.

The 2021 budget allocated Rs 5,54,236 crore ($67.5 billion in 2023 terms).

But the preceding two budgets -- the 2019 full budget and the 2020 budget -- failed to excite the markets.

In 2020, the indices fell even further. The Sensex fell 988 points at closing, while the Nifty was down 300 points after the budget.

The Sensex tanked 394 points while the Nifty fell 135 points after the 2019 full budget.

The Sensex rose over 200 points after the 2019 interim budget. The Nifty too rose before settling down below 10,900 points.

The 2019 interim budget was presented by Union Minister Piyush Goyal, in the absence of Finance Minister Aruun Jaitley.

Announcements on auto, defence & agriculture sectors led to the uptick in the markets.