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| Edited By: |Source: PTI |Updated: Mar 18, 2018, 04:10 AM IST
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex fell for the fourth session in a row to a month's low of 16,051.10 -- down 111 points in volatile movements -- as investors sold across sectors amid weak Asian markets on lingering fears about euro zone debt crisis.
There was strong selling in consumer durables, metals, refinery and capital goods, which pulled down the gauge below the 16,000 mark in intra-day trade.
Initially, the 30-share BSE index, Sensex, touched a high of 16,209.19 but fell back sharply on weak Asian trends to 15,801.01, down 361 points.
However, higher openings in Europe and some buying ahead of the expiry of September derivative contracts on Thursday helped Sensex to recover somewhat. Still, it ended down 110.96 points or 0.69 per cent at 16,051.10 -- the level not seen since August 26.
The broader NSE 50-issue Nifty also dropped 32.35 points or 0.66 per cent to 4,835.40. It touched an intra-day low of 4,758.85.
Continuing downslide for the fourth trading day, the top Sensex heavyweight, RIL, slipped further by 1.5 per cent and was major contributer to the fall. In four days, it has collapsed 10.83 per cent.
Heavy selling by foreign funds in last two sessions last week - nearly Rs 2,500 crore - has also affected the trading sentiment, brokers said.
"Investors are likely to remain jittery until the euro zone manages to seal an effective and acceptable rescue plan for Greece. A sliding rupee is adding to the list of macro-economic challenges for the Indian market. Things may turn bit more volatile ahead of the F&O expiry on Thursday," said Amar Ambani, head of research, IIFL.
Analysts said investors are expecting weak second quarter performance by some key companies following high input costs and slow down in the economy.
Besides RIL, HDFC Bank, L&T, Coal India, ITC, Sterlite Ind, Hindalco, Hero Honda, Jindal Steel, Bajaj Auto, ONGC and HDFC suffered a setback and weighed down the Sensex.
However, a marked rise in ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, Infosys, TCS and Wipro cushioned the fall.
Globally, Asian stocks ended weak on sustained fears of European debt worries. Key indices in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan ended down between 1.48 per cent and 2.64 per cent.
European markets, however, were firm in the afternoon trade on hopes of early bail-out plan for Greece. The DAX, the CAC and the FTSE were trading higher between 1.25 per cent and 3.4 per cent.
Overall, 21 of the 30 index-based scrips ended in the red while others closed in the green. Coal India was the top loser from the Sensex pack and was down by 5.46 per cent. Other losers were Sterlite Ind (4.40 per cent), Hindalco (3.80 per cent), Hero MotoCo (2.84 per cent), Jindal Steel (2.61 per cent), Bajaj Auto (2.45 per cent), Tata Power (1.80 per cent), HDFC Bank (1.64 per cent), L&T (1.62 per cent), NTper cent (1.62 per cent), ONGC (1.20 per cent) and ITC (1.15 per cent).
From the sectoral indices, BSE-Consumer Durables tumbled by 4.95 per cent, Metal (2.87 per cent), PSU (1.77 per cent), Oil&Gas (1.56 per cent) and Capital Goods (1.39 per cent).
Total market breadth was sharply weak as 1,996 stocks closed with losses, while only 786 that ended with gains. The total turnover was higher at Rs2,922.96 crore from Rs2,644.44 crore last Friday.
