Stocks bleed on bourses as FIIs press panic button

Mumbai: Sliding for the sixth straight session, equity benchmark Sensex on Thursday plunged about 900 points to crash below the 64,000 level due to a broad-based selloff amid heightened tension in the Middle East. The broader gauge Nifty fell below the psychological 19,000 level. Besides sluggish trends in global markets, deep losses in auto, financial and energy stocks as well as fresh selling by foreign investors added to the gloom, analysts said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex slumped 900.91 points or 1.41 per cent to settle below the 64,000 mark at 63,148.15. During the day, it plummeted 956.08 points or 1.49 per cent to 63,092.98. A total of 2,232 firms declined, while 1,426 advanced and 142 remained unchanged on the BSE. The Nifty dived 264.90 points or 1.39 per cent to 18,857.25.

“Nifty fell again for the sixth consecutive session, even as a series of poor corporate results in the US cast a shadow on the global risk appetite already impacted by the conflict in the Middle East. Asian stocks slid to 11-month lows, and European shares dropped on Thursday, hit by a rise in US Treasury yields, a slew of weak earnings reports with an ECB meeting and the release of US GDP to come later in the day,” remarked Deepak Jasani, Head (Retail Research), HDFC Securities.

Since October 17, the BSE benchmark has tumbled 3,279.94 points or 4.93 per cent, while the Nifty fell 954.25 points or 4.81 per cent. Mahindra & Mahindra was the biggest loser in the Sensex pack, falling 4.06 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finserv, Asian Paints, Nestle, Bajaj Finserv, JSW Steel, Titan, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, Tata Motors and Larsen & Toubro. In contrast, Axis Bank, ITC, HCL Technologies, NTPC and IndusInd Bank were the gainers.

“Selling pressure intensified due to expiry-led volatility influencing investors to stay cautious,” said Vinod Nair, head (research) at Geojit Financial Services. Till date, the actual domestic Q2 results are below par in comparison to the excited earnings forecasted. Similar disappointments are visible in developed economies. A downgrade in earnings and valuation is arising due to the risk of further slowdown of the economy due to geopolitical and elevated interest rates, it is said.