The Sensex fell almost 350 points in early trade on Monday, mirroring losses in index heavyweights Tata Steel and Reliance Industries
The Sensex fell 525 points on Monday, dragged down by losses in index heavyweights HDFC twins, Tata Steel, and ICICI Bank, amid a global market selloff. At 58,490.93, the 30-share BSE index fell 524.96 points, or 0.89 percent. Similarly, the NSE Nifty index fell 188.25 points, or 1.07 percent, to 17,396.90. Tata Steel was the Sensex’s biggest loser, falling over 10%, followed by SBI, IndusInd Bank, HDFC, Dr Reddy’s, and M&M.
HUL, Bajaj Finserv, ITC, and HCL Tech, on the other side, were among the gainers. “Indian markets appear to be taking a small breather, mostly due to anxiety in global markets,” said Milind Muchhala, Executive Director of Julius Baer. “The impending Fed meeting and the uncertainty building up in the Chinese real estate market owing to stress on one of the country’s big property companies are two key concerns on the minds of foreign investors,” he added. While the markets are waiting for clarity on the Fed’s taper intentions in terms of dates and quantity, he believes the Fed will offer an early notice on tapering at this week’s meeting, followed by a formal announcement at the November meeting.
In other Asian markets, the Hang Seng finished nearly 3% lower. For the holidays, China, Japan, and South Korea’s stock exchanges were closed. In mid-session deals, European stock exchanges were also trading with severe losses. Meanwhile, Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, slipped 1.92 percent to USD 73.89 a barrel.
This week’s flows have been dominated by macro issues, with persistent rumours about a huge possible bankruptcy in China creating fears of contagion. Furthermore, global markets are waiting for the US Federal Reserve to remark on its plans to reduce monthly asset purchases. The dollar index is also on the verge of a technical breakout to multi-month highs, which could have a negative influence on risk asset flows.