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Sensex, Nifty Close At Lowest Levels In Nearly 3 Months: 10 Things To Know
Both the indices registered their lowest closing levels since July 9 Mahindra & Mahindra shares were the top decliners on both the indices Crude oil prices hovered above $85 a barrel near recent 2014 highs
03 Oct 2018, 03:43 PM IST 
A selloff witnessed across sectors barring metal stocks dragged the markets lower
- Mahindra & Mahindra, Eicher Motors, Bharti Infratel, TCS and Axis Bank - which settled between 4.4 per cent and 7 per cent lower - led the declined on the 50-scrip index Nifty.
- The rupee declined below the 73 mark against the US dollar for the first time ever, and registered a fresh all-time low of 73.42. Crude oil prices hovered above $85 a barrel near recent 2014 highs. That coupled with demand for the greenback hurt the forex market, say analysts.
- "Crude at $85/barrel and rupee at 73 continue to be pressure points on the market," said Viral Berawala, CIO, Essel Mutual Fund.
- High crude oil prices along with weakness in the rupee tends to widen the current account deficit (CAD), as the country meets more than 80 per cent of its oil demand through imports.
- The NSE's sectoral indices for banking, financial services, fast-moving consumer goods and IT finished the day around 1-2 per cent lower.
- "More negativity and selling pressure is expected to continue in the markets going forward," AK Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital, told NDTV.
- Mahindra & Mahindra shares were the top decliners on both the indices, closing 7 per cent lower on the NSE. The Nifty Auto - the NSE's sectoral index comprising automobile shares - dropped 2.9 per cent. M&M shares extended losses to a seventh consecutive session.
- Mahindra & Mahindra on Monday reported a 2 per cent year-on-year increase in total sales last month. The company said factors such as low consumer buying sentiment and high fuel prices led to muted growth in the passenger vehicle segment
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) began its three-day monetary policy meeting on Wednesday. In the central bank's statement due on Friday, analysts will keenly watch any move on key lending rates and further steps to support the currency.
- Analysts widely expect the central bank to hike the repo rate - the key interest rate at which the RBI lends short-term funds to commercial banks - by 0.25 per cent. "The markets have priced in a 25-basis-point hike in the upcoming policy statement," Mr Prabhakar added.
(With agency inputs)