Mumbai, Oct 31 (IANS): The Indian stock market closed in the red on Diwali day as Sensex fell more than 500 points. There was heavy selling in the IT sector.

Sensex closed at 79,389.06 after falling 553.12 points or 0.69 per cent. At the same time, Nifty closed at 24,205.35 after falling 135.50 points or 0.56 per cent.

The Nifty Bank fell 332.15 points or 0.64 per cent to 51,475.35. The Nifty Midcap 100 index closed at 56,112.85 after falling 226.40 points or 0.40 per cent at the end of trading.

The Nifty Smallcap 100 index closed at 18,602.60 after rising 211.70 points or 1.15 per cent.

Selling was seen in all sectors of Nifty, except pharma, media and energy.

However, the market trend remained positive.

On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), 2654 stocks were trading in the green, 1262 in the red. At the same time, 110 stocks closed without any change.

Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, TCS, Infosys and Asian Paints were the top losers in the Sensex pack. At the same time, L&T, JSW Steel, Power Grid and Mahindra & Mahindra were the top gainers.

According to market experts, the Nifty index remained volatile before closing on a negative note.

On the hourly chart, it encountered resistance around the 21 EMA, leading to a pullback toward 24,200. Sentiment may continue to remain weak as long as Nifty stays below 24,500, with any rise toward this level likely facing selling pressure.

On the downside, support is placed at 24,000, while resistance levels are seen at 24,500 and 24,750, they said.

"However, the market expects the momentum to reverse in H2 due to a rebound in core sector data and government spending, which are likely to influence the Samvat 2081 investment strategy," said market experts.