Sensex slides 642 pts amid rise in oil prices
MUMBAI : Equity markets came under heavy selling pressure on Tuesday on fears that a spike in crude oil prices following attacks on Saudi oil facilities could hurt the economy further. India’s current account and fiscal deficit could take a hit if oil prices continue to rise after the attack, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das had said on Monday.The S&P BSE Sensex plunged 642 points or 1.73 per cent to end at 36,481.09, with Hero MotoCorp (down over 6 per cent) being the worst performer and HUL (up 1 per cent) the bigggest gainer. Out of 30 constituents, 27 ended in the red and just 3 closed in the positive territory.
During the session, the 30-share index hit a high and low of 37,169.56 and 36,419.09, respectively. HDFC, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries (RIL), and SBI emerged as the top contributors to the index’s fall. On the flip side, Infosys, HUL, and Asian Paints gave the much-needed support.
On NSE, the frontline index Nifty50 lost 186 points or 1.69 per cent to end at 10,818. Nifty Bank bled 723 points or 2.60 per cent to end at 27,132. Sectorally, all the indices on the NSE ended in the red. Auto stocks slipped the most, followed by realty and PSU bank scrips. The Nifty Auto index lost around 4 per cent to settle at 7,020.75 levels. Volatility index India VIX zoomed 7 per cent to end at 15.99.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index slipped 241 points, or 1.77 per cent, to 13,387 levels, and the S&P BSE SmallCap index lost 241 points or 1.84 per cent to close at 12,855.
The S&P BSE Sensex index slumped as much as 704 points to 36,419.09 at the day’s weakest level, and the broader NSE Nifty 50 benchmark dropped as much as 207 points to an intraday low of 10,796.50. With today’s fall, the 50-share National Stock Exchange benchmark index turned negative for 2019. Selling pressure was visible across sectors with all the 11 sector gauges compiled by the NSE ending lower in trade.
Rising crude oil prices in the aftermath of a drone attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities is likely to widen the trade deficit gap for India, which imports around 80 per cent of its crude requirement.
Rising crude oil prices in the aftermath of a drone attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities is likely to widen the trade deficit gap for India, which imports around 80 per cent of its crude requirement.
Selling of Indian shares by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) also added to the already weak investor sentiment, they added. Foreign investors have so far this month net sold shares worth Rs. 2,428 crore, according to data compiled by the National Securities Depository.
“Markets are falling on the back of rising crude oil, depreciation in rupee against the dollar and weakness in index heavyweights like HDFC and HDFC Bank,” Sumeet Bagadia, executive director at Choice Broking, told NDTV.
“Some more correction can be expected and Nifty can go down to 10,800-10,750 levels and Bank Nifty can fall to 27,000-26,800 levels,” he added.The selling pressure was so intense that only three out of 30 shares in the Sensex basket ended higher.
In the Nifty 50 basket of shares, 44 stocks ended with losses. For the calendar year 2019, the Nifty turned negative on Tuesday, with a decline of 0.41 per cent.
All the 11 sector gauges compiled by National Stock Exchange ended lower, led by a 3.8 per cent fall in the Nifty Auto index. The Nifty Bank, Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Financial Services, Metal, Private Bank and Realty indices also plunged between 2-3.5 per cent each.
HDFC, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries, Tata Consultancy Services and State Bank of India were among the biggest drags on the Sensex. They collectively wiped out over 350 points from the 30-scrip index.
Hero MotoCorp, Axis Bank, Maruti Suzuki, State Bank of India and IndusInd Bank were among the top losers in the Nifty 50 basket of shares.(With Agency Inputs ).
