Indian indices reversed 5-day winning trend on Tuesday, shedding over 1.3% of the market.
The U.S. central bank is expected to raise rates for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic at its meeting which concludes on Wednesday. Traders also turned cautious as the retail inflation in February rose 6.07 per cent, above the Reserve Bank’s 2 per cent to 6 per cent target for a second straight month.
The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 709 points or 1.26 per cent to settle at 55,777, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 208 points or 1.23 per cent lower to close at 16,663.
Mid- and small-cap shares finished on a weak note as Nifty Midcap 100 index fell 0.85 per cent and small-cap shares shed 0.87 per cent.
13 out of the 15 sector gauges — compiled by the National Stock Exchange — settled in the red. Nifty Metal and Nifty IT underperformed the index by sliding as much as 4.07 per cent and 2.58 per cent, respectively. However, Nifty Auto and Nifty FMCG rose 0.57 per cent and 0.17 per cent, respectively.
On the stock-specific front, Tata Steel was the top Nifty loser as the stock cracked 5.24 per cent to ₹ 1,229.05. Hindalco, ONGC, Coal India and JSW Steel were also among the laggards.
Paytm’s parent One 97 Communications crashed another 12.28 per cent to hit fresh fresh low of ₹ 592.40. The stock has tumbled by nearly 25 per cent in the last two days after RBI barred Paytm Payments Bank from onboarding new customers.
The overall market breadth stood negative as 1,338 shares advanced while 2,048 declined on BSE.
On the 30-share BSE index, Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Reliance Industries, HCL Tech and PowerGrid were among the top losers.
