New Delhi- Investors became poorer by Rs 3.87 lakh crore on Wednesday amid a sell-off in the equity market that saw benchmark Sensex tumbling 928 points.
Concerns over fresh geo-political tensions and weak global market trends ahead of the release of the minutes of the US Federal Open Market Committee meeting adversely impacted investor sentiments.
The BSE Sensex fell 927.74 points or 1.53 per cent to 59,744.98 points. During the day, it tanked 991.17 points or 1.63 per cent to 59,681.55 points.
The sharp decline in equities eroded Rs 3,87,228.19 crore from the market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms and that now stands at Rs 2,61,33,883.55 crore.
“Overnight slump in the US market shook the Indian stocks badly as heavy selling across the board saw Sensex crash nearly 1,000 points and plunge below the crucial 60,000 mark.
“Markets were already range-bound with a negative bias in the last few sessions and today’s sharp fall could further accentuate the pressing concerns of rising interest rate going ahead, higher inflation, and slowing global growth,” Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail) at Kotak Securities Ltd, said.
Equity benchmarks fell for the fourth day running and during this period, the Sensex has plunged 1,574.53 points or 2.56 per cent.
In four days, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms has dropped Rs 6,97,102.05 crore.
“Markets plunged sharply and lost over one and a half per cent, tracking weak global cues. The pace of decline was gradual till Tuesday but a sharp cut in the US markets has completely changed the tone,” Ajit Mishra, VP – Technical Research at Religare Broking Ltd, said.
In the Sensex pack, Bajaj Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv, Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, HDFC, Wipro, ICICI Bank and Tata Steel were the major laggards.
ITC was the lone winner.
All the sectoral indices ended lower, with utilities tanking 2.26 per cent, commodities (2.15 per cent), power (2.09 per cent), realty (1.80 per cent), financial services (1.71 per cent), metal (1.65 per cent) and energy (1.53 per cent).
In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge declined 1.16 per cent and smallcap index fell 1.09 per cent.
“Although it should be a short-term effect, the fear of sanctions against Russia and its degree of implication on the economy, especially on food and oil exports, is adding to the anxiety. The market is just recovering from the pandemic, and high interest & inflation are the headwinds in the background.
“Awaiting the release of Fed and RBI minutes are the other major elements that kept investors on the side lines,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said.
As many as 2,592 stocks declined while 884 advanced and 130 remained unchanged. Also, 266 firms hit their 52-week low levels on the BSE. (PTI)
