Sensex Slumps Over 650 Points From Day's High As Banking Shares Drag
Mid- and small-cap shares rallied after market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) tweaked norms for asset allocation for multi-cap mutual funds.
by Abhishek Vasudev
Domestic stock markets gave up their intraday gains on Monday afternoon, amid intense selling pressure in banking, financial services, energy and pharma shares. The S&P BSE Sensex index dropped as much as 656 points from its highest level recorded during the session, and the broader NSE Nifty 50 benchmark dropped below the 11,400 mark. Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC, Hindustan Unilever and Bharti Airtel were among the top drags on the Sensex.
At 2:32 pm, the Sensex traded 194 points lower at 38,660, while the Nifty was down 72 points at 11,405.
Six of 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange traded lower, led by the Nifty Bank index, which was down 1.2 per cent. The NSE's Financial Services, Pharma, PSU Bank and Private Bank indices traded around 1 per cent lower each.
On the other hand, IT shares witnessed strong buying interest led by HCL Technologies, which hit a record high after the IT major upgraded its revenue and the operating margin guidance the current quarter.
Mid- and small-cap shares rallied after market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) tweaked norms for asset allocation for multi-cap mutual funds.
BPCL was the top percentage loser in the Nifty basket of 50 shares, down 3 per cent at Rs 416.
Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank, Grasim Industries, State Bank of India, Hindustan Unilever, Hindalco, HDFC Bank, Sun Pharma, HDFC, Power Grid and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among top laggards, trading between 1.5 per cent and 3 per cent lower.
On the flipside, HCL Technologies, Infosys, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, Tata Motors, TCS and UPL were among the gainers.