Introduction — A Calm Day That Turned Chaotic After 3 PM
The morning of the Stock Market 31 October started with routine trade and cautious optimism: markets were digesting earnings, global headlines, and the week’s flow of foreign buying and selling. Yet, as often happens, the tone changed sharply after 3 PM. What began as a measured session turned into a late-hour selloff — a reminder that in markets, the “close” often tells a different story than the “open.”
If you follow our daily recaps, you know this pattern well: consolidation early, selective momo names rallying, and then profit-taking or macro headlines triggering the reversal. For readers who want the full series of daily finishes, visit the OneDemat Day-End Market Summary for a running archive of sessions including the run-up to today.
The Stock Market 31 October tells a layered story — one of midcap fireworks and large-cap caution — and that layered story is what this post unpacks in detail.
Index Performance on Stock Market 31 October
The headline indices closed materially lower after heavy selling in the final hour. Below is the concise table and a short commentary on what those numbers mean for market structure.
| Index | Closing Level | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| NIFTY 50 | 25,725.35 | -152.50 | -0.59% |
| SENSEX | 83,955.14 | -449.32 | -0.53% |
| Nifty Bank | 57,786.00 | -245.10 | -0.42% |
| Nifty IT | 35,719.65 | -186.75 | -0.52% |
| S&P BSE SmallCap | 53,855.39 | -236.86 | -0.44% |
Commentary: the Stock Market 31 October closed with clear breadth weakness — not a one-stock event. Nifty Bank and Nifty IT both turned negative, which removed a major cushion. SmallCap selling, while not extreme in percentage terms, signaled risk-off among traders who had chased recent momentum.
You can cross-check intraday prints and time-and-sales at the exchanges’ official pages: NSE India and BSE India.
Top Gainers on Stock Market 31 October
Even on weak days there are pockets of strength. These winners had clear catalysts — mostly earnings beats or sector tailwinds — and they attracted strong volume.
- Navin Fluorine — +14.28% (₹5,687.40)
Catalyst: a strong results print (estimates beat) and optimistic guidance from management pushed Navin Fluorine to a ten-year high. Specialty chemicals names often move sharply on visibility of export orders and margin expansion; today’s move was classic earnings re-rating. - Chennai Petroleum — +10.66% (₹979.35)
Catalyst: margin improvement and refining commentary. Chennai Petroleum touched a fresh 52-week high as refining margins turned favourable and street participants rewarded the operational recovery. - Intellect Design Arena — +8.29% (₹1,133.50)
Catalyst: rapid results and strong client commentary. The fintech software provider’s order pipeline and software-services visibility drove the rally; institutional buyers were visible on the tape. - IDBI Bank — +6.03% (₹103.80)
Catalyst: surprisingly strong numbers and better asset quality commentary. Even though banks broadly were weak, selective names with turnaround stories drew buying and touched multi-week highs. - Latent View Analytics — +5.94% (₹448.35)
Catalyst: data-analytics and cloud service demand remains strong; results and margin optimism helped lift this midcap IT play with high volume.
Takeaway: the top gainers were mostly result-driven names where fundamentals improved materially — a reminder that even during a down day, stock-specific news can create outsized winners.
Top Losers on Stock Market 31 October
The day’s losses were driven by a mix of earnings misses, regulatory concerns, and profit booking. Here’s why the biggest decliners fell.
- Bandhan Bank — -8.22% (₹156.56)
Reason: earnings miss and weak guidance. When a bank with recent strong momentum disappoints, position squaring by short-term funds compounds the drop. - Maharashtra Scooters — -6.65% (₹15,108.00)
Reason: weak results triggered a sharp correction in this discretionary consumer name. High PE midcaps are particularly vulnerable to even small misses. - Apar Industries — -6.27% (₹8,671.00)
Reason: odd reversal despite an earnings beat (post-results profit booking). Large swings in cyclical industrials can occur when traders take quick profits after sizable prior gains. - Sapphire Foods — -5.09% (₹286.05)
Reason: near-term demand concerns and cautious forward commentary from management led to selling in this quick-service restaurant operator. - Motilal Oswal — -4.61% (₹978.00)
Reason: regulatory headwinds and sectoral uncertainty weighed on market-making and financial services names, prompting a re-rate.
Overall pattern: losses clustered in financials and certain cyclical consumer/industrial names where either results disappointed or profit booking intensified.
Top Gainers vs Top Losers — Stock Market 31 October
| Top Gainers | % Change | Top Losers | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Navin Fluorine | +14.28% | Bandhan Bank | -8.22% |
| Chennai Petroleum | +10.66% | Maharashtra Scooters | -6.65% |
| Intellect Design Arena | +8.29% | Apar Industries | -6.27% |
| IDBI Bank | +6.03% | Sapphire Foods | -5.09% |
| Latent View Analytics | +5.94% | Motilal Oswal | -4.61% |
This side-by-side snapshot shows the day’s polarisation: strong company-specific rallies alongside heavy, often news-driven selloffs.
Why the Market Down Today
You gave five primary reasons, and each deserves a deeper, practical explanation. Below I expand each point and show how it fed into the Stock Market 31 October outcome.
1. Persistent Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) Selling — the biggest causal force
FIIs sold equities aggressively — ₹3,077.59 crore net on Thursday after ₹2,540.16 crore the previous day. That sequence matters: sustained foreign selling forces market makers to widen spreads and dampens momentum. FIIs often sell index futures and arbitrage positions first, which mechanically increases realized volatility and pushes index levels down. In plain terms: when FIIs become net sellers for consecutive sessions, local buyers hesitate and large caps drop faster — exactly what we saw in the late-day dump.
Key implication: until FII flows stabilise, rallies are vulnerable. You can monitor daily FII flows on exchange pages (NSE/BSE) and on data platforms such as Moneycontrol.
2. Weak Global Cues — negative overnight leads to domestic selling
US markets closed lower (S&P -0.99%, Nasdaq -1.57%) on a cocktail of weaker tech earnings and higher AI spend concerns. Global risk-off quickly translates into lower Asian opens and weaker futures for India. Traders reduce exposure overnight, causing domestic futures to gap lower — and intraday selling often follows. The Stock Market 31 October decline mirrored this pattern: global weakness in equities + bond-yield moves + currency swings created a poor starting point for domestic risk appetite.
For context and global reads, see the coverage at Economic Times Markets and Moneycontrol.
3. Federal Reserve’s Cautious Policy Stance — “cut but cautious” hurts risk assets
The Fed’s 25 bps cut came with a message: further easing is uncertain. That mixed signal reduced the positive impact of the rate cut. When central banks cut but signal caution, it typically causes short-term swings: markets initially cheer, then sober up as investors reassess growth versus inflation. For emerging markets like India, this typically means higher volatility in FX and equities — and it played out today.
4. Disappointment Over US-China Trade Deal — less than market hoped for
The Trump-Xi meeting produced only a time-bound truce, not a sweeping trade pact. Markets had priced in hopes of a broader improvement; the limited outcome trimmed risk appetite, weakening demand prospects for export-sensitive sectors and increasing caution across cyclical names in India.
5. Profit Booking Near Resistance Levels — technical sellers balanced the selloff
Technically, markets were near the 26,100 resistance zone. Profit booking is normal and healthy — traders who rode the prior rally locked gains. The combination of profit taking and the macro headwinds amplified the decline: technical stop-losses were hit after FII selling and global weakness, producing a cascade that intensified the late-day slide.
Putting it together: how the five reasons interacted
The Stock Market 31 October drop was not a single-issue event. FIIs initiated selling; global risk aversion and Fed caution added fuel; the limited US-China outcome removed a hoped-for positive; and profit booking near resistance converted that macro pressure into a sharp domestic decline. The last hour selling was the visible tip of a coordinated set of pressures — and that’s why the move was both sudden and broad.
Conclusion — What traders and investors should watch next
The Stock Market 31 October session closed the month on a note of heightened caution. Short-term traders should watch intraday liquidity, FII net flows, and futures positioning. Longer-term investors should view this correction as an opportunity to reassess positions in fundamentally strong names.
Key levels & watchlist:
- Support zone: 25,500–25,600 for Nifty (watch for intraday buying interest)
- Resistance: 26,100–26,300 — reclaiming this range on strong volume will be a confidence signal
- Monitor FII flows daily (exchange pages and Moneycontrol) and global central bank commentary (Economic Times / Reuters coverage).
For continuing session recaps and end-of-day analysis, keep following our Day-End Market Summary on OneDemat. For live index reference and filings, the exchanges are the primary source: NSE India and BSE India. For company-level detail and results commentary, Moneycontrol and Economic Times provide quick readouts and expert quotes.
