Equity investors lose Rs 2.89 lakh crore in two days of market fall

Investors' wealth fell by Rs 2.89 lakh crore in two days of market fall, with the BSE Sensex tumbling 796 points on Wednesday, amid weak global market trends ahead of the US Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.

Fresh foreign fund outflows and caution ahead of a host of interest rate decisions from global central banks also added to the overall bearish trend. Besides, the US Fed meeting, the BoE (Bank of England) and the BoJ (Bank of Japan) are also scheduled to meet this week.

Falling for the second day running, the 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 796 points, or 1.18 per cent, to settle at 66,800.84 points. During the day, it fell by 868.7 points, or 1.28 per cent, to 67,294.16 points.

The BSE benchmark fell 241.79 points, or 0.36 per cent, to settle at 67,596.84 points on Monday. Equity markets were closed on Tuesday on account of Ganesh Chaturthi.

Following the bearish trend in equities, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies fell by Rs 2,89,121.56 crore to Rs 3,20,51,859.15 crore in two days.

"The domestic markets remained under pressure due to rising US bond yields and a stronger greenback. Concerns reigned over upcoming Fed policy, interest rate trajectory and rising oil prices.

"Bank Nifty underperformed today due to rising cost of funds and reduction in deposits, leading to moderation in net yields," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Among the Sensex firms, HDFC Bank emerged as the biggest laggard, falling 4 per cent. JSW Steel, Reliance Industries, UltraTech Cement, Maruti, Tata Steel, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel and Larsen & Toubro were the other major laggards.

Power Grid, Sun Pharma, Asian Paints, ITC, Axis Bank, NTPC, and Tata Consultancy Services were among the gainers. In the broader market, the BSE smallcap gauge fell by 0.51 per cent and midcap index declined 0.33 per cent.

Among the indices, financial services fell by 1.39 per cent, commodities dropped 1.39 per cent, metal (1.25 per cent), realty (1.20 per cent), bankex (1.05 per cent), telecommunication (0.95 per cent) and oil & gas (0.68 per cent). Utilities and power were the gainers.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 1,236.51 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Global oil benchmark Brent crude fell 1.23 per cent to USD 93.18 a barrel.

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