 "stock brokers, BSE, NSE, Sensex, Nifty")
Equity markets took a sharp plunge in the second half of trade on Tuesday as the BSE Sensex sank 1,668 points from its intraday high of 72,039. The index, which jumped 615 points earlier in the day, crashed 1,053 points to end at 70,371. The NSE Nifty pulled back to 21,239 with a loss of 333 points.
Large-cap majors, mostly banks, were the top drags. IndusInd Bank, Coal India, SBI Life, ONGC, Adani Ports, SBI, BPCL, HUL, HDFC Life, Hindalco, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, UPL, and Bajaj Finance dropped 3 per cent to 6 per cent, leading losses on the frontline indices.
Midcap and Smallcap indices on the BSE held sharper losses nearly 3 per cent each.
Among sectors, Nifty Media index led losses with a downturn of 13 per cent, dragged by shares of Zee Entertainment, which cracked 31 per cent as its merger with Sony Group was called off.
Nifty Realty, Oil & Gas indices declined up to 5 per cent, while Pharma index defied the trend and held 1.6 per cent gains.
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Here's what weighed on sentiment Tuesday:
Bank stocks on decline: HDFC Bank was again the top culprit behind Tuesday's weakness. It hit a 52-week low with a 4 per cent slide today. In the past one week, the stock has tanked 15 per cent and has seen its market capitalisation erode by Rs 1.9 trillion as Q3 numbers showed falling net interest margins and weaker deposit growth.
IndusInd Bank, SBI and Axis Bank were other top drags on Tuesday amid concerns the margin squeeze for the banking pack may continue in coming quarters.
Volatile oil market: Crude oil prices gained strength over the weekend and were trading at $80 per barrel, a gain of 2 per cent after a suspected Ukrainian drone attack on a large fuel export terminal in Russia.
Russian energy company Novatek said on Sunday it had to suspend some operations at a huge Baltic Sea fuel export terminal due to a fire.
Meanwhile, the US and the UK jointly carried out fresh airstrikes on eight targets of the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on Monday, keeping tensions in the Middle-East high.
US treasury yields hold higher: Even as the cash market remained resilient, hitting new highs on Monday night, Treasury yields were holding onto gains today morning. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note was around 1.7 basis points higher at 4.11 per cent ahead of Q4 GDP data in the US due for release on Thursday.
The benchmark yield has recently been holding above 4 per cent as investor bets of higher rate cuts waned recently following remarks from some Fed officials.
