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Key share indices have extended the losses and have reached near day’s low weighed down by FMCG and Capital Goods shares.
By 1430, Sensex plunged by 397 points at 19,726, and the Nifty down 116 points at 5,991 levels. The Sensex and the Nifty reached an intra-day low of 19,723 levels and 5,990 mark, respectively.
On the global front, oil and gold prices fell on Monday as the dollar strengthened, weighing on Asian shares, but Japanese equities outperformed on the back of the yen's slide to a fresh 4-1/2-year low against the U.S. currency.
European stock markets have opened marginally lower after the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index closed at a five-year high on Friday.
U.S. stock futures were down 0.3%, pointing to a weak Wall Street open, after the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ended at record highs on Friday.
Back home, after four months, the consumer-price inflation came back to single digit at 9.39% in April against 10.39% in the previous month.
In both urban areas as well as rural parts, inflation was in single digit in the first month of 2013-14, with the rate of price rise standing at 9.73% in the former and 9.16% in the latter.
Meanwhile, country's merchandise exports grew by 1.6% to $24.16 billion in April this year, whereas imports increased by 10.9%.
Foreign institutional investors’ ownership of the thirty stocks that make up the Sensex is at its highest level in eight years.
This comes even as promoters shed their stake in these companies to the lowest in eight years, according to a Bank of America Merrill Lynch India Strategy report.
On the sectoral front, BSE FMCG index has slumped by almost 3% followed by counters like Capital Goods, IT, Metal, PSU, Auto, Oil & Gas, Power, Banks and Healthcare, all falling down between 1-2%. Apart from Realty, all the major BSE sectoral indices are trading in red zone.
ITC is the top Sensex loser, down over 5% amid profit taking after the stock rallied 24% in past one month on the BSE. ITC has outperformed the market by surging 24% from Rs 285 since April 11, compared to 8.5% rise in benchmark Sensex till Friday.
Other notable losers are Bharti Airtel, GAIL, TCS, BHEL, Tata Steel, L&T, Sterlite, Cipla and Tata Motors, all falling between 1-3%.
Among other shares, Apollo Tyres is trading lower 4.4% to Rs 90.15 on NSE after reporting 10% year-on-year (yoy) drop in its consolidated net profit at Rs 141 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 (Q4) due to drop in standalone volumes and significant increase in the depreciation expenses.
Meanwhile, BSE Midcap index has plunged by 0.88% whereas BSE Smallcap index is down 0.67%.
The market breadth in BSE remains unhealthy with 1,380 shares declining and 796 shares advancing.
