Sensex falls for second day

The 30-share index closed at 18,665, a drop of 68 points while Nifty dropped 23 points to close at 5,519

The BSE Sensex retreated for a second straight session on Wednesday, as drugmaker Lupin slumped after domestic revenue fell, while Tata Motors was hit after reporting a 23 per cent drop in quarterly profit.

Weaker Asian shares also weighed after the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President, Charles Evans, said the US central bank could scale back bond buying later this year and, depending on data, could do so next month.

Stocks have fallen in 10 of the last 11 trading sessions, as investors turn wary of slowing growth and the rupee that tumbled to a record low on Tuesday despite the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s cash-draining measures. "We need to see what sort of policy measures the government will take to build confidence around the currency at this point, and there's some nervousness in the market about that," said Neelesh Surana, equities head at Mirae Asset Management.

The 30-share BSE Sensex closed at 18,664.88, a drop of 68.16 points, or 0.36 per cent, while the Nifty dropped 23.15 points, or 0.42 per cent, to close at 5,519.10.

Drugmaker Lupin dropped 6.68 per cent after April-June domestic revenue fell five per cent from a year earlier, with sales slowing at home as well as in Japan. Tata Motors slid 3.01 per cent after April-June net profit fell 23 percent from a year earlier, missing estimates.

Information technology companies fell, as investors booked profits on recent gains from the weak rupee. HCL Technologies fell 4.01 per cent, while Tata Consultancy Services dropped 2.53 per cent and Infosys closed down 0.8 per cent.