Investors poorer by over Rs 2 lakh cr as stock markets plummet

Investors' wealth on Tuesday tumbled over Rs 2 lakh crore amid heavy selling pressure in domestic equities.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 567.98 points or 1.02 percent to settle at 55,107.34.

In tandem with weak equities, the market capitalization of BSE-listed firms tumbled by Rs 2,08,291.75 crore to Rs 2,54,33,013.63 crore.

''Investors are in a wait and watch mood ahead of the RBI's credit policy announcement. The market has simply borne the brunt of unabated FII selling, which continues to desert Indian equities amid a weakening rupee and strengthening dollar,'' said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail) at Kotak Securities Ltd.

Titan was the biggest laggard in the Sensex pack, falling 4.48 percent, followed by Dr. Reddy's, Larsen & Toubro, HUL, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance, TCS, and ICICI Bank.

NTPC, Maruti, M&M, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Industries, and Power Grid managed to settle in the green.

''Markets inched lower and lost a percent amid mixed cues. Initially, weakness in the global markets was weighing on the sentiment, and continued selling in banking, FMCG and IT majors kept the pressure intact till the end. The focus will be on MPC's meeting outcome on Wednesday,'' said Ajit Mishra, VP - Research at Religare Broking Ltd.

In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge declined 0.77 percent and the smallcap index dipped 0.67 percent.

Among BSE sectoral indices, consumer durables tanked 2.71 percent, followed by realty (1.57 percent), capital goods (1.53 percent), FMCG (1.42 percent), IT (1.42 percent), teck (1.32 percent) and basic materials (1.17 percent). In contrast, oil & gas, energy, telecom, utilities, auto, and power ended with gains.

A total of 2,011 stocks declined, while 1,286 advanced and 121 remained unchanged.

(With PTI inputs)