Mumbai: Indian markets joined the global rout today as the benchmark Sensex went into a downward spiral, falling as much as 484 points, the most in over a month, spooked by a Chinese sell-off and heightened Greece fears. The 30-share gauge crashed 483.97 points, or 1.72 per cent, to settle at 27,687.72. The broader Nifty too lost 147.75 points, or 1.74 per cent, to end the day at 8,363.05.
Already on edge over Greek confusion, the sentiment took a big blow after China mainland index Shanghai Composite saw a sharp correction despite additional measures by the government to shore up the tumbling market.
A fresh weakness in the rupee against the US dollar also dampened mood, equity brokers said. “Markets opened for the day on a weaker note and remained in the red through the day’s trading session. Markets worldwide corrected on the back of concerns about a probable Greece exit and new renewed fears over Chinese markets,” said Hiren Dhakan, Associate Fund Manager, Bonanza Portfolio.
The major market laggard was Vedanta as Tata Motors, Hindalco, Tata Steel, HDFC and GAIL too tanked. Of the 30-share Sensex pack, 29 ended the day lower. It was only HUL that bucked the trend and gained marginally.
Sectorally, the metal index bore the brunt, followed by auto, realty, banking, PSU, oil and gas and IT. In line with the trend, broader markets mid-cap and small-cap indices closed lower by 1.30 per cent and 1.28 per cent, respectively.
Elsewhere, in Asia, Hang Seng fell 5.84 per cent, followed by Nikkei and Kospi. European markets are trading with modest gains on hopes of a breakthrough in the ongoing Greece stand-off.
