Sensex drops over 130 pts in early trade; Nifty tests 17,000

The 30-share BSE barometer was trading 138.56 points lower at 57,223.64 in opening trade. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty dipped 43.55 points to 17,109.45.

Mumbai: Equity benchmark Sensex fell over 130 points in early trade on Monday, tracking losses in index-heavyweights HDFC twins, TCS and HCL Tech amid a weak trend in Asian markets and renewed foreign fund outflows.

The 30-share BSE barometer was trading 138.56 points lower at 57,223.64 in opening trade. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty dipped 43.55 points to 17,109.45.

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From the 30-share pack, HDFC Bank, HDFC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India, Dr Reddy’s, Bajaj Finserv, Nestle India, Asian Paints, HCL Technologies, TCS and Tech Mahindra were among the biggest laggards.

On the other hand, Maruti Suzuki India, ITC, Bharti Airtel and Sun Pharma were trading in the green.

On Friday, the 30-share BSE benchmark dropped 233.48 points or 0.41 per cent to settle at 57,362.20. The Nifty had declined 69.75 points or 0.40 per cent to 17,153.

Equity exchanges in Tokyo and Shanghai were quoting lower, while Hong Kong and Seoul traded higher during mid-session deals.

Stock exchanges in the US also ended on a mixed note on Friday.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude declined 2.65 per cent to USD 117.45 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market, as they sold shares worth Rs 1,507.37 crore on Friday, according to the stock exchange data.

Overseas investors have pulled out a net Rs 1,14,855.97 crore from the Indian markets in the current year, so far, amid heightened geopolitical tensions and inflation concerns.

Foreign portfolio investors have sold domestic equities worth Rs 48,261.65 crore so far this month, taking the year-to-date tally this year to a massive Rs 1,14,855.97 crore, according to depositories data.

“Even though the Ukraine war and the consequent crude spike impacted markets initially, the war is not impacting markets much now. The major headwinds for markets in 2022 will continue to be the high US inflation and Fed tightening,” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.