Sensex falls 230 points; techs gain on weak rupee
The BSE Sensex fell as much as 1 per cent, while the broader Nifty traded below the key 6,300 levels on Friday. Indian markets tracked Asian shares, which declined over weakness in Chinese manufacturing.
As of 2.10 p.m., the Sensex traded 194 points lower at 21,180, while the broader Nifty was down 65 points at 6,281. The rupee hit a two-week low of 62.27.
Rate sensitive stocks fell sharply on the central bank's hawkish commentary on inflation. Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan called inflation a "destructive disease" that was forcing the central bank to keep monetary policy tight. The warning on inflation comes after an RBI panel on Tuesday recommended making retail inflation a priority. (Read the full story)
Realty stocks slumped over 2.5 per cent, while autos declined 1.5 per cent. DLF, India's biggest developer, fell 3.7 per cent, while Tata Motors traded 3.5 per cent lower.
The Bank Nifty was down 1.8 per cent. ICICI Bank, India's largest private lender, traded 2.3 per cent down, while State Bank of India slipped 1.9 per cent.
Drugmaker Ranbaxy was the biggest loser on the Nifty, down 18 per cent. The company's Toansa facility in Punjab has been banned by the US Food and Drug Administration. The latest move means Ranbaxy's products are all but entirely banned from the US. The company might also lose first to file rights for 3 drugs including Diovan and Nexium, analysts said. (Read the full story)
Profit taking in recent gainers such as L&T also hurt sentiments. L&T retreated 2.5 per cent after rising around 3 per cent on higher-than-expected margins in Q3 yesterday.
However, buying was seen in IT stocks on the back of rupee weakness. TCS was the top Nifty gainer, up 0.8 per cent, while Wipro traded 0.4 per cent higher.
Overnight, lacklustre earnings and a rise in US jobless claims upstaged indicators from a survey showing manufacturing output in Europe rose to its highest level in nearly three years.
The Dow closed down 175.99 points, or 1.1 per cent, at 16,197.35. The S&P 500 lost 616.40 points, or 0.9 per cent, to 1,828.46.
(With agency inputs)