New Delhi: The bears tightened their grip over Dalal Street on Tuesday, as benchmark Sensex logged its longest losing streak since May on unabated fall in the rupee, jump in crude oil prices and weakness in global markets.
Indian currency slipped 33 paise today to hit a fresh record low of 71.53 against the US dollar on strong demand for the greenback.
Crude oil prices rose sharply after the evacuation of two Gulf of Mexico oil platforms in preparation for a hurricane. US light crude rose $1.31 a barrel from Friday’s close to a peak of $71.11, its highest since mid-July.
The BSE Sensex closed the day at 38,157.92, down 154.60 points or 0.40 per cent. Only six constituents ended the day on a positive note. This was the fifth consecutive day of fall for the 30-share index.
The NSE Nifty ended the session 62.05 points, or 0.54 per cent, down at 11,520.30. As many as nine stocks closed higher while the remaining 40 shut shop in the red.
Nifty Bank index tanked 388.75 points, or 1.40 per cent, to 27,430. Only Axis Bank managed to close higher in the 10-share index. IDFC Bank was the worst hit with a fall of 6.05 per cent to Rs 45.
“The persistent strengthening of crude oil prices and weak currency dampened investor sentiments. The broader market indices underperformed the benchmark with BSE Midcap and Smallcap ending the day with losses of 2.6 per cent and 2 per cent respectively”, said Jayant Manglik, President, Religare Broking.
“We remain positive on the Indian equities over medium to long term, however in the near term one should remain cautious as further correction cannot be ruled out, considering a sharp upmove witnessed over the last couple of weeks. Additionally, global developments on trade war, movement of crude oil prices and currency movements (USD vs INR) will be on market radar. Any correction in fundamentally sound companies with strong growth prospects should be considered as a good buying opportunity for investors”, Manglik added.
Among Sensex stocks Asian Paints emerged to be the top index loser with a loss of over 3 per cent.
However, IT major Infosys was the best index performer and soared nearly 3 per cent to settle at Rs 735.65. Shares of the company rose after the scrip went ex-bonus in the ratio of 1:1.
The BSE Midcap index underperformed Sensex with a fall of 2.60 per cent against Sensex’s decline of 0.40 per cent. Reliance Power was the worst hit midcap stock with a loss of 7.54 per cent.
Among sectoral indices, only IT stocks managed to end the session on a positive note bolstered by a sharp decline in rupee. The Nifty IT index jumped 2.06 per cent to 16,048.70.
Banking, media, FMCG, metals, auto and pharma stocks shed the most. The Nifty metal index lost 1.94 per cent to settle at 3,585.60.
The Nifty PSU bank index slid 116.50 points to 3,167.05 with all 9 constituents ending the day in the red.
Elsewhere, European shares fell slightly in late morning trade on Tuesday, reversing a positive open as investors remained cautious due to worries the US could slap new tariffs on imports from China.
