Indian markets joined the global rout on Wednesday as the benchmark Sensex went into a downward spiral, falling as much as 484 points, the most in over a month, spooked by a Chinese sell-off and heightened Greece fears.
The 30-share gauge crashed 483.97 points, or 1.72 <g data-gr-id="15">per cent</g>, to settle at 27,687.72. The broader Nifty too lost 147.75 points, or 1.74 <g data-gr-id="16">per cent</g>, to end the day at 8,363.05. Already on edge over Greek confusion, the sentiment took a big blow after China mainland index Shanghai Composite saw a sharp correction despite additional measures by the government to shore up the tumbling market.
A fresh weakness in the rupee against the US dollar also dampened <g data-gr-id="21">mood</g>, equity brokers said.
"Markets opened for the day on a weaker note and remained in the red through the day’s trading session. Markets worldwide corrected on the back of concerns about a probable Greece exit and <g data-gr-id="20">new</g> renewed fears over Chinese markets," said Hiren Dhakan, Associate Fund Manager, Bonanza Portfolio. The major market laggard was Vedanta as Tata Motors, Hindalco, Tata Steel, HDFC and GAIL too tanked.
`Rs falls by 14p to 63.60 per $
Falling for the second day, the rupee depreciated by 14 paise to close at over one-week low of 63.60 against the Greenback on steady dollar demand from state-owned banks and importers. A massive rout in financial markets and <g data-gr-id="47">commodites</g> worldwide jolted by Chinese stock bubble burst also weighed on the local currency, a forex dealer said.