Markets snap 2-day winning run; Sensex slumps nearly 390 points on weak global cues

Mumbai, August 17

Snapping their two-day winning run, equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty closed in the negative territory on Thursday, tracking losses in index majors Reliance Industries, ITC and HDFC bank amid a weak trend in global markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 388.40 points or 0.59 per cent to settle at 65,151.02. During the day, it fell by 493.32 points or 0.75 per cent to 65,046.10.

The NSE Nifty slipped 99.75 points or 0.51 per cent to end at 19,365.25.

ITC was the biggest loser from the Sensex pack, sliding 2.04 per cent, followed by Power Grid, Reliance Industries, Larsen & Toubro, Nestle, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finance and JSW Steel.

On the other hand, Titan, State Bank of India, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, Sun Pharma, Tech Mahindra and Bharti Airtel were the gainers.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong ended lower, while Shanghai settled in the green.

European markets were trading lower in the afternoon session. The US markets ended in negative territory on Wednesday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.36 per cent to USD 83.75 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned buyers on Wednesday as they bought equities worth Rs 722.76 crore, according to exchange data.

The BSE benchmark had climbed 137.50 points or 0.21 per cent to settle at 65,539.42 on Wednesday. The Nifty gained 30.45 points or 0.16 per cent to end at 19,465.