Sensex tumbles over 300 pts, Nifty slips below 18,200

Equity benchmark Sensex drops over 300 points in early trade on Thursday tracking losses in index majors ICICI Bank, HDFC and Infosys, amid a weak trend in global markets and unabated foreign fund outflow.

Mumbai: Equity benchmark Sensex drops over 300 points in early trade on Thursday tracking losses in index majors ICICI Bank, HDFC and Infosys, amid a weak trend in global markets and unabated foreign fund outflow. The 30-share index was trading 306.32 points or 0.50 per cent lower at 60,837.01 in initial deals. Similarly, the Nifty fell 89.50 points or 0.49 per cent to 18,121.45.

ICICI Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding around 2 per cent, followed by Tata Steel, ITC, SBI, HDFC and Titan. On the other hand, IndusInd Bank, L&T, Bajaj Auto and Bajaj Finance were among the gainers. In the previous session, the 30-share index ended 206.93 points or 0.34 per cent lower at 61,143.33, and Nifty fell 57.45 points or 0.31 per cent to 18,210.95. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,913.36 crore on Wednesday, as per exchange data.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo were trading with losses in mid-session deals, while Seoul was positive. Stock exchanges in the US ended on a negative note in the overnight session. Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude fell 2.25 per cent to USD 81.98 per barrel.

PTI