Markets down for 2nd session

Mumbai: Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty buckled under selling pressure for the second straight session on Friday as a bearish trend in global equities and concerns over rate hikes by central banks unnerved investors. Besides, selling pressure in index majors Reliance Industries, Infosys and L&T also dragged the benchmark indices lower, traders said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 259.52 points or 0.41 per cent to settle at 62,979.37. During the day, it tumbled 364.77 points or 0.57 per cent to 62,874.12. The NSE Nifty declined 105.75 points or 0.56 per cent to end at 18,665.50. On a weekly, the BSE benchmark fell 405.21 points or 0.63 per cent and the Nifty dipped 160.5 points or 0.85 per cent.

“Nifty fell for the second consecutive session on June 23 pulled lower by negative global cues. Global stocks fell on Friday, extending their declines for the week and edging towards their worst week since March, as traders worried that central banks’ efforts to curb sticky inflation will lead to recessions and strengthen the US dollar,” said Deepak Jasani, head (retail research), HDFC Securities.

“Global central banks are currently focused on addressing inflation and have reiterated their commitment to reaching their target levels, as evidenced by the hawkish commentary from (US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome) Powell and the unexpected rate hike by the Bank of England. “The downward revision of earnings guidance by a major US tech company Accenture has raised concerns about potential earnings downgrades in the Indian IT sector, resulting in pressure on IT stocks, ” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.