Press Trust of India
Mumbai, Jan 20: Investor wealth Wednesday diminished by Rs 1.84 lakh crore amid massive sell-off in the equity market following weakness in global indices due to growth worries. The benchmark BSE Sensex tumbled 417.80 points or 1.71 per cent to end at 24,062.04 points. With this, the index has fallen to the weakest level since May 16, 2014, the day the new government won a landslide mandate in general elections.
Following weakness in stocks, the market capitalization of BSE-listed companies fell by Rs 1,84,086 crore to Rs 90,64,734 crore. The NSE Nifty after cracking the crucial 7,300-mark, settled 125.80 points or 1.69 per cent down at 7,309.30. “The market ended at fresh 20-month low with the Sensex closing down 417 points as worries on global economic growth continued to roil the Asian and European markets,” said Sanjeev Zarbade, Vice President-Private Client Group Research, Kotak Securities Limited.
Among the 30-Sensex components, 27 ended in the red led by Adani Ports and SEZ, State Bank of India and Reliance Industries Ltd. Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp and Wipro, however, ended with moderate gains. Sectorwise, BSE realty index suffered the most, followed by metal, PSU, power, banking and oil&gas. At the BSE, 2,105 stocks declined, while 511 advanced. 137 stocks remained unchanged.
Tracking the weak sentiment in the stock market, 194 stocks hit their 52-week lows on the BSE. “Bears continue to hammer the bourses on global sell-off and crude hitting multi-year lows. Further, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) slashing its global growth forecasts also spooked the sentiment worldwide. Relentless selling by foreign portfolio investors and sharp depreciation in rupee raised concerns to the investors,” said Gaurav Jain, Director, Hem Securities.
