Bank stocks prevented the Sensex from falling more than 193 points, in the midst of uncertainty about government formation and mixed global cues.
Bank stocks prevented the Sensex from falling more than 193 points, in the midst of uncertainty about government formation and mixed global cues.
Fresh bouts of selling, after recent heavy buying, by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) also weighed on the market as they were net sellers to the tune of Rs 100.89 crore on May 8, according to provisional data.
The Bombay Stock Exchange 30-share barometer initially touched a high of 12,026.60 but tumbled to a low of 11,621.30 before concluding the day at 11,682.99, a steep fall of 193.44 points or 1.63 per cent from its previous close.
The realty sector index suffered the most, losing 5.19 per cent to 2,233.27, followed by consumer durables, which was down 2.59 per cent to 1,898.01.
The fall in the Sensex was partly checked after the Sensex-heavy private lender ICICI Bank climbed Rs 2.85 to Rs 523.45 on reports of Singapore's Temasek proposing to raise its stake in the bank and if it would trigger the open offer.
The 50-issue Nifty of the National Stock Exchange was down 66.10 points or 1.83 per cent to 3,554.60 from the last close.
Bonanza Portfolio assistant vice-president Avinash Gupta said: "The rally in the Indian stock market is continuing for the past nine weeks. It is expected that the market would take a break. The market took a breather today as investors are waiting for the election results."
Market participants said that the initial recovery in share values was due to excellent fourth-quarter results by SBI and Hindustan Unilver Ltd (HUL).
India's largest public sector lender SBI reported 45.62 per cent growth in net profit in the fourth quarter of 2008-09, beating market expectations, while FMCG major HUL's net profit rose by 20 per cent in the same quarter.
But the SBI share dipped by 4.86 per cent in the end after an initial rise, and HUL was down by 2.94 per cent.
The bank index was one of those that fell the least today, down just 0.75 per cent to 5,962.56.
The capital goods index fell 2.48 per cent to 8.296.13, power 1.88 per cent to 2,135.48, teck 1.77 per cent to 2,187.31 and metals 1.72 per cent to 7,813.17.
The oil and gas index fell 1.65 per cent to 8,329.70, PSU 1.63 per cent to 5,998.88, FMCG 1.09 per cent to 2,070.61, healthcare 1.06 per cent to 3,089.47, IT 1.05 per cent to 2,696.71, and auto 0.55 per cent to 3,631.99.
Singapore was down 3.22 per cent, China 1.75 per cent, and Hong Kong 1.74 per cent while Taiwan was up 0.97 per cent, South Korea 0.21 per cent and Japan 0.20 per cent at close today.
European markets such as France and Germany were trading lower by 1.76 per cent and 0.89 per cent, respectively, while the UK was quoting up by 0.50 per cent.
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