The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) benchmark Sensex and the National Stock Exchange’s (NSE’s) Nifty today ended 3 per cent down after a volatile session as investors unwound positions in most index majors ahead of Thursday’s holiday on account of Guru Nanak Jayanti, dealers said.
Earlier in the day, the indices had entered the positive territory for a brief period after the Index for Industrial Production (IIP) data for September showed a growth of 4.8 per cent from 1.3 per cent in August. However, investors trimmed holdings at every rise, resulting in a decline, dealers said.
Also, some fresh short positions were built in the derivative segment, which contributed to the fall in the indices, they said.
“It was expected to be volatile. There was very little participation from funds. Most of them (funds) sold after the IIP numbers were out as it was a holiday tomorrow and global cues remained negative,” an institutional dealing head of a domestic brokerage house said.
The Sensex closed at 9,536.33, down 303.36 points or 3.1 per cent, after moving between a low of 9,376.73 and a high of 9,928.60. On the other hand, the Nifty ended at 2,848.45, down 90.20 points or 3.1 per cent. Intraday, it moved between 2,794.95 and 2,975.20.
Turnover on NSE and BSE combined was Rs 13,881 crore today. Bank shares were the worst hit on profit sales as the sector was lacking near-term triggers, dealers said.
ICICI Bank tumbled over 8 per cent to end at Rs 397, while State Bank of India declined by over 3 per cent.
Shares of real estate companies were also beaten down today on heavy fund selling as outlook for the sector was deteriorating, dealers said.
DLF shed nearly 9 per cent to Rs 245 and was the worst hit on the Nifty.
Metal shares continued their slide on declining commodity prices due to slackening demand. Steel Authority of India was down 8.6 per cent at Rs 71.60. Sterlite Industries and Hindalco Industries lost over 5 per cent each.
