Investors prefer to offload amid uncertainty

Mumbai: Falling for the fifth day in a row, benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled nearly one per cent each on Thursday due to heavy sell-off in metal, consumer durables and select IT shares amid the monthly expiry of derivatives contracts. Sensex and the NSE Nifty have experienced their fifth consecutive session of losses, resulting in investors losing nearly Rs10 lakh crore in market wealth as mcap of BSE-listed companies fell to Rs4,10,36,227.92 crore (Rs410.36 lakh cr or $4.92 trillion).

On Thursday alone, mcap fell by Rs4,73,486.02 crore. The 30-share BSE Sensex plunged by 617.30 points or 0.83 per cent to settle at 73,885.60 points. The barometer hit the day’s low of 73,668.73 due to selling in blue-chips. In the five days of fall, the barometer tanked 1,532 points or 2 per cent. The index has been on a downtrend since May 23 when it closed at its lifetime high level. The NSE Nifty dropped by 216.05 points or 0.95 per cent to close at 22,488.65. The index has lost 479 points in the five sessions to Thursday. Analysts said investors remained cautious, ahead of the 2024 general election results, which are set to be announced next week.

The electioneering halted on Thursday ahead of the last phase of polls to be held on June 1. The results will be declared on June 4.

“The benchmark index is taking cues from the US market as treasury yields continue to climb following the stickiness of global inflation, delaying the central bank’s interest rates cut policy.