Bourses continue to slide for 4th straight session amid selling in IT & banking stocks

Mumbai: Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains to close lower for a fourth straight session on Thursday due to selling in IT and banking shares amid weak global equities.

The 30-share BSE benchmark settled 98 points or 0.18 per cent lower at 53,416.15. During the day, it hit a high of 53,861.28 and a low of 53,163.77.

The broader NSE Nifty also pared initial gains and ended 28 points or 0.18 per cent down to settle at 15,938.65.

Among the Sensex constituents, Axis Bank declined the most by 1.74 per cent. HCL Technologies, State Bank of India, Tech Mahindra, TCS, Wipro, UltraTech Cement and ITC were the major laggards.

Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy's Lab, Maruti Suzuki India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Titan and Reliance Industries were among the gainers. Energy stocks gained after reports said that the government may review the windfall tax on petrol and diesel exports after a sharp decline in crude oil prices.

Reliance Industries rose by 0.83 per cent helping the index restrict losses. In the broader market, the BSE smallcap gauge declined 0.56 per cent, while midcap dipped 0.40 per cent.

Energy, healthcare, consumer durables, oil & gas and power were among the winners. The rupee edged closer to the historic low of 80-mark against the dollar as it declined by a little over 18 paise to settle at 79.9975 amid a stronger US dollar.