Sensex, Nifty retreat on global sell-off as US Fed turns hawkish

Profit Booking

- Gap-down opening on Thursday

- BSE index ended 621.31 pts lower at 59,601.84

- NSE Nifty plunged 179.35 pts to 17,745.90

- Tech Mahindra top loser

- UltraTech Cement, RIL, HCL Tech, HDFC twins, Kotak Bank and TCS in the red

- IndusInd Bank, Airtel, Maruti, Titan and Bajaj Fin among gainers

Mumbai: Equity benchmarks lurched lower on Thursday after a four-session winning run, in lockstep with a sharp sell-off in world stocks after minutes of Federal Reserve's recent meeting indicated faster-than-expected rate hikes.

The 30-share BSE Sensex slumped 621.31 points or 1.03 per cent to finish at 59,601.84. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty plunged 179.35 points or 1 per cent to 17,745.90.

"Following a sharp fall in western markets, the domestic market witnessed a gap-down opening and extended its losses led by selling in IT, realty and oil & gas shares. Global markets were wounded by heavy selling as Fed meeting minutes pointed to a faster than expected policy rate hike considering elevated US inflation levels. Investors are also watching the fast spread of Covid cases and stricter restrictions being imposed as it would keep the market highly volatile in the coming days," said Vinod Nair, head (research) at Geojit Financial Services.

Ajit Mishra, V-P (research), Religare Broking, adds: "Markets may witness further consolidation in the near-term. Apart from the global cues and Covid news, the earnings-related updates would keep the volatility high. Traders should continue with a positive yet cautious approach and focus more on sectors/stocks selection."

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers in the capital market on Wednesday, as they purchased shares worth Rs 336.83 crore, as per exchange data.