Mumbai:
Investor wealth today slumped by Rs 1.57 lakh crore, following heavy selling in the broader market where the BSE benchmark index tanked about 410 points to close at a five-month low.
The 30-share Sensex dived 409.73 points or 1.24 per cent to close at 32,596.54.
Led by the sell-off, the total market capitalisation of BSE -listed companies diminished by Rs 1,57,268.54 crore to Rs 1,39,30,643 crore.
The BSE Sensex plunged by about 410 points to close at a five-month low while the broader Nifty crashed below the 10,000 mark for the first time this year following a global sell-off due to fears of a trade war as US President Donald Trump announced tariffs on Chinese goods.
The 30-share Sensex tumbled by 409.73 points or 1.24 per cent to close at a five-month low of 32,596.54, a level last seen on October 23 last year.
The 50-issue Nifty ended below the psychological 10,000-level by dropping 116.70 points or 1.15 per cent to 9,998.05, the lowest closing level in five months. The level was last seen on October 11 last year, when it had closed at 9,984.80.
"The fears of a global trade war played a major role in today's fall across global markets. Locally, markets have been facing headwinds since the start of February, be it the imposition of long term capital gains or the much talked about banking fraud. This being a politically busy year in India, volatility can stay high for an extended period," said Devang Mehta, Head – Equity Advisory, Centrum Wealth Management.
"Volatility expanded and market is losing its grip due to escalating tensions of trade war and spike in oil prices," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services Ltd.
Investor sentiment turned extremely bearish, in line with sharp losses on the Wall Street, Asian and European markets, on growing fears of a global trade war after Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese imports and Beijing drawing up a list of retaliatory measures, brokers said.
The markets opened with a negative bias as global trade war tensions intensified after US President Donald Trump ordered at least USD 50 billion in tariffs on Chinese imports and China announced plans for reciprocal tariffs on USD 3 billion of imports from the US, Anand Shah, Deputy CEO & Head of Investments – BNP Paribas Mutual Fund said.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services Ltd said, "Volatility expanded and market is losing its grip due to escalating tensions of trade war and spike in oil prices." "Market corrected 10% from its peak while metal & PSU banks continue to be the laggards.
For the fourth straight week, the flagship Sensex recorded a fall of 579.46 points, or 1.75 per cent, while the NSE Nifty lost 197.10 points, or 1.93 per cent.Realty, metal, bankex, capital goods, healthcare, PSU, auto and oil & gas stocks recorded widespread losses.
Metal stocks led by SAIL, Jindal Steel, Vedanta, Hindalco Ind. Jindal Steel, National Aluminium, Hindustan Zinc, Tata Steel, NMDC and JSW Steel fell up to 6.58 per cent due to intense selling pressure.
Banking stocks took a hit after Totem Infrastructure was booked by the CBI for allegedly defrauding a consortium of eight banks led by Union Bank to the tune of Rs 1,394 crore.
The Nifty Bank index fell 471.10 or 1.95 per cent to close at around eight-month low of 23,670.40 as Axis Bank, PNB, Yes Bank, Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, IDFC Bank, SBI, Bank of Baroda, HDFC Bank, Kotak Bank, Federal Bank and IndusInd Bank dropped up to 3.87 per cent.
Union Bank of India also ended lower by 8.29 per cent to Rs 86.85 amid concerns over losses incurred in a Rs 13.94-billion loan fraud case.