Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade on Monday amid foreign fund outflows and largely weak Asian markets. The decline in frontline stocks like ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries also dragged the market in the opening session. The BSE Sensex tumbled 464.22 points to 85,107.63 in early trade. The NSE Nifty tanked 133.85 points to 26,045.10.
Asian markets down
In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo were trading lower while Shanghai and Hong Kong traded in the positive territory. Japan's Nikkei 225 index tanked nearly 5 per cent in the early trade. The US markets ended on a mixed note on Friday.
Among the 30 Sensex firms, Tech Mahindra, ICICI Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank and UltraTech Cement were among the major laggards. Meanwhile, Tata Steel, JSW Steel, NTPC, Titan, Hindustan Unilever and Asian Paints were among the gainers.
Foreign funds outflow
As per exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) equities worth Rs 1,209.10 crore outflowed on Friday. "Market is likely to move into a consolidation phase in the near-term. One significant factor that is influencing foreign portfolios is the outperformance of the Chinese stocks which is reflected in the massive surge in the Hang Seng index by around 18 per cent in September. This surge has been triggered by hopes of revival in the Chinese economy in response to the monetary and fiscal stimulus announced by the Chinese authorities," said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.
Oil benchmark climbs
Meanwhile, Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.71 per cent to USD 72.49 a barrel. On Friday, the BSE benchmark Sensex declined 264.27 points or 0.31 per cent to settle at 85,571.85. During the day, it had climbed 142.13 points or 0.16 per cent to set a new record intra-day peak of 85,978.25. Nifty, on Friday, dipped 37.10 points or 0.14 per cent to 26,178.95 after rising 61.3 points or 0.23 per cent to an all-time intra-day peak of 26,277.35 during the session.
(With PTI Inputs)
