New Delhi: The key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Friday declined sharply, taking cues from weak global markets.
At 10.15 am, the 30-share BSE Sensex was down 1,001 points to 54,700, while broader NSE Nifty was at 16,376, down 306 points.
On the BSE, almost all the constituents were trading in the red, except ITC, M&M, Bharti Airtel, and NTPC. Bajaj Finance was the top loser with a fall of 3.33 per cent. While ITC was leading the pack, trading 1.58 per cent higher.
In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices slumped to 2.2 per cent.
On NSE, all of the 15 sector gauges were trading in the red. Sectorwise, Nifty Auto, Nifty IT and Nifty Consumer Durables were underperforming the index by falling as much as 2.09 per cent, 2.32 per cent and 2.55 per cent, respectively.
In the previous session on Thursday, the BSE Sensex closed marginally 33 points (0.06 per cent) higher at 55,702, while the NSE Nifty inched up 5.05 points (0.03 per cent) to 16,682.
In Asian markets, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Korea were trading significantly lower, while Tokyo quoted marginally higher. In the US, stock exchanges had fallen sharply in the overnight trade on Thursday.
“US markets witnessed a relief rally on Wednesday after FOMC meeting but it tumbled on Thursday due to more anxiety over rising interest rates. Asian markets are trading in the red in early Friday trade," Mohit Nigam, head - PMS, Hem Securities, told the PTI.
Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 0.45 per cent to $111.40 per barrel.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) again offloaded shares worth Rs 2,074.74 crore on Thursday, according to stock exchange data.