Sensex Slumps Over 400 Points Amid Broad Selloff

BSE Sensex and Nifty slumped over 1.5 per cent on Tuesday amid a broad selloff. All the sectoral indices on the BSE ended in the red, with realty, banking, metal and capital goods stocks particularly witnessing strong selling pressure.

The Sensex fell 431 points to 26,775, its worst one-day fall since July 8. The broader Nifty slumped 128 points to 8,017.

Shrikant Chouhan, technical analyst at Kotak Securities, said he expects Nifty to remain in the 7980-8070 zone in the near term. The selloff could accelerate if Nifty falls below 7980, he adds.

The BSE realty index fell nearly 5 per cent to be the biggest loser among BSE sectoral indices. Unitech fell over 10 per cent while DLF slumped 6.5 per cent to be the biggest loser among Nifty stocks.

The selling pressure was stronger in the broader markets. BSE midcap index fell nearly 2 per cent while smallcap index slumped 2.5 per cent.

Buying by foreign investors slowed down in the past week with foreign institutional investors (FIIs) selling on average Rs 73 crore of Indian equities per day between September 16-19. In comparison, their average daily buying during September 9-15 stood at Rs 393 crore and during September 1-8 at Rs 990 crore.

Metal stocks also saw a selloff amid softening commodity prices across the globe. Hindalco and Tata Steel fell over 3 per cent.

Among oil & gas stocks, ONGC and BPCL fell nearly 3 per cent.

Besides profit-taking, weak global markets also weighed on Indian markets. Most of the Asian markets ended in the red after a survey in China showed factory employment slumped to a 5-1/2-year low, offsetting benefits from the same survey showing China's factory sector beat expectations. Indian markets were also cautious ahead of the expiry of monthly derivatives contracts on Thursday.

European shares were lower in early trade. In its monthly survey, financial information company Markit said Tuesday that its purchasing managers' index for the eurozone - a gauge of business activity - fell to a nine-month low of 52.3 in September from the previous month's 52.5. (With Agency Inputs)