Benchmark share indices extended losses tracking weak global markets as crude prices continue to fall further. Further, selling by foreign funds in the previous sessions continue to weigh on investor sentiment.

By 9:40AM, the Sensex was lower by 254 points at 27,065 mark and the Nifty slipped by 75 points at 8,148 levels.

Even as the hostage scenario unfolds at Sydney, Australia, India's second largest IT services provider Infosys confirmed that one of its employee has been taken as a hostage.

"We can confirm that one Infosys employee is among the hostages at the Lindt Cafe in Sydney. We are also in the process of confirming the whereabouts of all our other employees in the city. We are in constant touch with the local authorities and Indian Consulate in Sydney for updates on the situation on ground," said the company in a statement.

Abu Dhabi-based LULU Group, owned by Indian origin businessman M A Yusuf Ali, has announced that it will invest Rs 2,500 crore in Telangana in the next one year.

The LULU group is the largest retail chain in the Middle-East having over 100 hypermarkets and a total turnover of over $5 billion, it said.

Anil Ambani led Reliance Group has sold its multiplex business to South-India based Carnival Group in the largest ever deal in this space.

The transaction will reduce Reliance Capital’s overall debt by Rs 700 crore and is part of Reliance Capital’s strategy to exit minority investments.

Having remained the largest private sector employer for decades, the Indian information technology (IT) services sector is perhaps set for a change as three of its largest companies — Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro, have remained slow on hiring in the past few years, hinted at bottom fishing of workforce and ‘restructured’ their senior-level staff.

According to experts, the shift in technology landscape and the resultant change in demand from clients is the major reason for this swing.

SBI Pinkathon, Empowering Indian Women, an initiative to promote women’s health and breast cancer awareness, concluded its Mumbai leg at MMRDA Grounds, Bandra-Kurla complex, on Sunday.

Ten thousand women across age groups and segments of the society participated in the 3-km, 5-km and 10-km categories.

An armed man today took undisclosed number of people hostage at a popular cafe here and displayed an Islamic flag with Arabic script in the window, sparking a security alert in Australia.

Authorities sealed off surrounding streets, evacuated people from buildings, and suspended rail services following the incident at the Lindt Chocolate Cafe in Martin Place, in the heart of the city's business district.

Private sector lender HDFC Bank has said a merger with parent Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) makes sense in the long term. There is no proposal on the table and regulatory clarity is required to make such a deal more beneficial.

A possible merger between HDFC Bank and the housing finance giant has been talked about for a long time. Such a transaction can create the country’s second largest financial sector institution, after State Bank of India.

As the government seeks to create a vibrant, deep and liquid corporate bond market, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has approached the Reserve Bank of India and ministry of corporate affairs, among others, to address impediments in this regard.

Sebi has also proposed allowing reissuance of existing debt securities by a corporate issuer within the specified time, rather than launching a new issue.

Benchmark indices are trading lower, amid weakness in their Asian peers, dragged by losses in information technology and oil shares. Further, contraction in Index of Industrial Production for October to 4.2% also dampened sentiment.

At 9:30 AM, the 30-share Sensex was down 121 points at 27,241 and the 50-share Nifty was down 28 points at 8,196.

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