Sensex Tanks 700 Points, Nifty Trades Below 17,700; Major Indices In Red

The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices, in the broader market, were also trading in the red, down 0.8 and 0.9 per cent, respectively

Banking and IT stocks were the top losers. HDFC, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Kotak Bank, M&M, IndusInd Bank, RIL, ICICI Bank, and TCS were trading 0.9-1.8 per cent lower. Image: Getty

New Delhi: After a four-day winning streak, the key Indian equity benchmarks on Thursday lost momentum and slumped after massive Covid outbreak in the country and weakness across global markets. The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty opened sharply lower and were down 0.9 per cent.

At 9.45 am, the Sensex was 713 points down to 59,509, while the Nifty was at 17,674, lower by 250 points.

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At 9.40 a.m., Sensex traded at 59,445 points, down 1.3 per cent from its previous close of 60,223 points. It opened at 59,731 points. Similarly, Nifty traded at 17,704 points, down 1.2 per cent from the previous close of 17,925 points. It opened at 17,768 points.

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- IANS (@IANS) 6 Jan 2022

The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices, in the broader market, were also trading in the red, down 0.8 and 0.9 per cent, respectively.

On the NSE, the volatility rate has gone up over 2 per cent (around 17 levels), indicating high levels of apprehension among investors.

Losses across most sectors, led by financial, IT and oil & gas shares, pulled the headline indices lower.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, only two stocks – Maruti and Bharti Airtel – were trading in the green zone, while the rest are all in negative. On the Nifty, Hindalco and UPL were in the positive zone.

Banking and IT stocks were the top losers. HDFC, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Kotak Bank, M&M, IndusInd Bank, RIL, ICICI Bank, and TCS were trading 0.9-1.8 per cent lower.

Mostly all sectors were in the red, except Nifty Metals, which was up 0.3 per cent. Pharma shares were also recorded flat on the NSE.

Meanwhile, the Asian shares also dropped extending a global plunge after Federal Reserve meeting minutes pointed to a faster-than-expected rise in US interest rates due to concerns about persistent inflation. Worries over higher US rates combined with growing concerns about the rapid spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant to weigh on riskier assets.

International oil benchmark Brent crude fell 1.13 per cent to $ 79.89 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital market, as they bought shares worth Rs 336.83 crore on Wednesday, according to stock exchange data.