Markets tumble as Federal Reserve retains hawkish tone; Sensex drops 1.4%

Wall Street's main stock indices were down more than 2 per cent in early trade

The Indian markets fell along with global peers on Thursday after the US Federal Reserve said interest rates would go “higher for longer”, dashing hopes that the central bank could take a dovish turn, following the softer inflation data of November.

The Sensex dropped 879 points, or 1.4 per cent, to end the session at 61,799, posting the biggest daily decline in about two months. The Nifty50 index, on the other hand, fell 245 points, or 1.3 per cent, to settle at 18,415. Index heavyweights like HDFC Bank and Infosys weighed on the market. The Nifty IT Index slipped 2.1 per