Mumbai: Market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended nearly 2 per cent lower on Wednesday after a day’s breather as a spike in global crude oil prices amid growing tensions in West Asia unnerved investors.
Besides, sustained foreign fund outflows and selling in blue-chip bank stocks added to the pressure, traders said.
The 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 1,342.27 points or 1.72 per cent to settle at 76,863.71. During the day, it dropped 1,446.72 points or 1.84 per cent to 76,759.26.
A total of 2,380 stocks declined, while 1,881 advanced and 153 remained unchanged on the BSE.
The 50-share NSE Nifty tanked 394.75 points or 1.63 per cent to end at 23,866.85.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies faced an erosion of Rs 5,14,063.2 crore to Rs 4,41,90,196.39 crore ($4.81 trillion).
Bajaj Finance was the biggest drag in the Sensex pack, sliding 5.01 pr cent, followed by Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, Trent, Bharti Airtel and Kotak Mahindra Bank.
On the other hand, Sun Pharma and NTPC were the only gainers.
The BSE midcap select index tanked 1.55 per cent, and the smallcap select index declined 0.61 per cent.
The auto index declined about 3 per cent as the sector continued to face multiple headwinds, including higher raw material costs and persistent supply chain challenges, particularly semiconductor shortages affecting production, Khemka said.
Among BSE sectoral indices, auto tumbled 3.06 per cent, bankex (2.06 per cent), Private Banks index (2.03 per cent), BSE Top 10 Banks (2.03 per cent), financial services (1.99 per cent), consumer discretionary (1.89 per cent) and PSU Bank (1.87 per cent).
In contrast, BSE energy, healthcare, utilities, oil & gas and power were the gainers.
The rupee declined 16 paise to settle at 92.01 against the US dollar on Wednesday, weighed down by a sharp rise in global crude oil prices and a stronger greenback as the war in West Asia raged on.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 5.76 per cent to $92.86 per barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,672.64 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs), however, bought stocks worth Rs 6,333.26 crore.
In the previous session, the Sensex jumped 639.82 points or 0.82 per cent to settle at 78,205.98.
The Nifty climbed 233.55 points or 0.97 per cent to end at 24,261.60.