Mumbai: Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled nearly 1 per cent Wednesday, taking the losses to the third consecutive day, following a sharp spike in crude oil prices and selling in bank stocks.
The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 715.06 points, or 0.92 per cent, to settle at 76,755.05. During the day, it slumped 828.92 points, or 1 per cent, to 76,641.19.
The 50-share NSE Nifty declined 191.45 points, or 0.79 per cent, to end at 23,996.25.
From the Sensex pack, InterGlobe Aviation, Infosys, State Bank of India, UltraTech Cement, ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank were among the major laggards.
Hindustan Unilever, NTPC, Power Grid, and Titan were among the winners.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 4.68 per cent to USD 95.27 per barrel.
“Indian equities closed lower as a sharp rise in crude oil prices and persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East kept investors firmly in risk-off mode. The benchmark indices faced sustained selling pressure throughout the session, with broad-based declines across most sectors overshadowing an otherwise encouraging start to the first-quarter earnings season,” Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm.
Investor attention remained firmly on the macro backdrop as higher crude oil prices and renewed concerns over potential US tariffs on pharmaceutical imports weighed on sentiment, he added.
In Asian markets, South Korea’s KOSPI and Shanghai’s SSE Composite index ended higher, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index settled lower.
Markets in Europe were trading higher. US markets ended higher on Tuesday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned buyers on Tuesday. They bought equities worth Rs 1,650.16 crore in the previous trade, according to exchange data.
On Tuesday, Sensex declined 238.41 points, or 0.31 per cent, to settle at 77,470.11. The Nifty edged lower by 50.80 points, or 0.21 per cent, to end at 24,187.70.
