Sensex plunges over 400 pts; HDFC Bank cracks 3%

Domestic equity benchmark BSE Sensex plunged over 400 points in early trade on 22 July amid heavy foreign fund outflow and weak domestic as well as global cues.

The 30-share index was trading 373.14 points or 0.97% lower at 37,963.87 at 09:30 a.m.; and the broader Nifty also sank 116.80 points or 1.02% to 11,302.45.

In the previous session, the 30-share index cracked 560.45 points or 1.44% to settle at 38,337.01. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty sank 177.65 points or 1.53% to 11,419.25. This was the second-biggest fall for the Sensex in 2019. The index had plunged 792.82 points on July 8 following the Budget.

In early trade, HDFC Bank was among the top losers in the Sensex pack, cracking up to 3%, after the lender reported a rise in non-performing assets (NPAs).

During the quarter, gross NPAs rose to ₹11,768.95 crore which is 1.40% of the total advances, compared with ₹9,538.62 crore which was 1.33% in the same quarter 2018-19 fiscal.

Other losers included Bajaj Finance, HDFC, IndusInd Bank, Kotak Bank, ONGC, HUL, ITC, NTPC, Bharti Airtel and ICICI Bank, falling up to 2.85%.

On the other hand, Vedanta, Tata Motors, Yes Bank, Sun Pharma, Hero MotoCorp, Asian Paints and Maruti were among the top gainers, rising up to 3.54%.

On a net basis, foreign institutional investors sold equities worth ₹950.15 crore, while domestic institutional investors purchased shares to the tune of ₹733.92 crore, provisional data available with stock exchanges showed on Friday.

According to experts, the sell-off by foreign funds was due to the government’s reluctance to tweak foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) income tax surcharge.

The deficiency in monsoon rain and weak corporate earnings have also impacted the risk sentiment, they said.

With domestic investors already battling concerns of a slowing economy, markets are witnessing broad-based selling, said Sunil Sharma, Chief Investment Officer, Sanctum Wealth Management.

“The market reaction post the BJP victory in 2019 is in stark contrast to the bullish tenor in 2014, and market participants expecting a repeat of 2014 are clearly disappointed, he added.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee depreciated 22 paise (intra-day) to 69.02 against the U.S. Dollar.

The global oil benchmark Brent crude futures were trading 1.34% higher at $63.31 per barrel.

Elsewhere in Asia, Shanghai Composite Index, Hang Seng, Nikkei and Kospi were trading in the red in their respective early sessions.