Sensex Dives 1,017 Points, Nifty Barely Holds 16,200; IT Stocks Among Top Drags

Indian equity benchmarks on Friday swung back into the red after a surprise rise in the previous session. The domestic indices plunged sharply today, dragged by selling pressure in information technology, financial and energy stocks.

Concerns over the impact of aggressive monetary policy tightening by the central banks on global economic growth spooked investors.

The 30-share BSE Sensex crashed 1,017 points or 1.84 per cent to close at 54,303 today, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 276 points or 1.68 per cent down to settle at 16,202.

Investors lost Rs 3.11 lakh crore in Friday's session, with the market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies falling to Rs 2,51,84,358.86 crore.

Mid- and small-cap shares finished on a weak note as Nifty Midcap 100 fell 0.83 per cent lower and small-cap slumped 1.10 per cent.

All the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- settled in the red. Sub-indexes IT, Nifty Financial Services and Nifty Oil & Gas underperformed the platform by falling as much as 2.17 per cent, 2.24 per cent and 2.08 per cent, respectively.

On the stock-specific front, Bajaj Finance was the top Nifty loser as the stock cracked 4.08 per cent to Rs 5,658. Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC, Hindalco and Reliance Industries were also among the laggards.

The overall market breadth stood negative as 1,309 shares advanced while 1,999 declined on BSE.

On the 30-share BSE index, Kotak Bank, Bajaj Finance, HDFC, Reliance, Wipro, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, TCS, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Sun Pharma were among the top losers.

Also, shares of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), the country's biggest insurer and largest domestic financial investor, plunged to a new intraday low of Rs 708.70. The stock finally settled 1.70 per cent lower at Rs 709.70.

In contrast, Asian Paints, UltraTech Cement, Dr Reddy's, Titan, Hindustan Unilever, Maruti, Nestle India and NTPC finished in the green.