Sensex closes over 750 points; Nifty ends below 10,300 on global rout

Mirroring the markets rout across the globe, the BSE Sensex today slumped over 750 points to end at a six-month low and the Nifty ended below the 10,300 mark amid rising trade concerns and expectation of rate hikes in the United States. The benchmark BSE Sensex closed down 2.19 percent at 34,001.15, while broader NSE Nifty ended 2.16 percent lower at 10,234.65.

In the opening trade today, the BSE Sensex cracked over 1,000 points, breaching the 34,000-mark and hit a low of 33,723.53, before staging a partial recovery to touch a high of 34,325.09 in afternoon trade. The gauge finally ended 759.74 points, or 2.19 per cent, lower at 34,001.15. This is the lowest closing since April 11. It had gained 461.42 points Wednesday.

The NSE Nifty settled at 10,234.65, down 225.45 points, or 2.16 per cent, moving between 10,138.60 and 10,335.95 in day trade.

Notably, global indices also witnessed across-the-board losses after investor sentiment was hit by heavy sell-off in world markets.

"The market sell-off is part of the global sell off triggered by the sharp cut in the mother market US," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, told PTI, adding "The US economy is doing very well, so much so that inflation has started creeping up. The US 10 year bond yield, the risk free asset in the world, is around 3.15 per cent. This is triggering capital outflows from EMs like India. Apart from the rising yield in the US and EM currency woes, there are global trade skirmishes impacting the sentiment." 

In their early session today, Asian stocks also ended lower and European stocks too slumped to over 18-month low, tracking overnight worst losses in eight months on the Wall Street ysterday. 

In the forex market, the rupee, after hitting yet another record low of 74.50 against the dollar in early deals, turned positive in late afternoon trade and was quoting 24 paise higher at 74 as Brent crude slipped below the USD 82 a barrel and dollar weakened overseas.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) offloaded shares worth Rs 1,096 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth a net Rs 1,893 crore Wednesday, provisional data showed.

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Shares of oil and gas companies were among the nine stocks that withstood the selloff, after a finance ministry source`s comments on subsidies, said Reuters report, adding that Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd was the top percentage gainer at 16.2 percent.