Sensex Down 1,170 Points, Nifty Dips 348 Points

New Delhi: Key benchmark indices on Monday crashed as market participants resorted to unabated selling. The BSE indices — the Sensex — ended its Monday trade at 58,465.89 after plunging 1,170 points, while the NSE Nifty tumbled below the 17,500 level, to end with a loss of 348 points at 17,417.

Major laggards on the BSE included Reliance Industries (RIL), Maruti, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finserv, and SBI with their shares down as much as 6.01 per cent.

On the NSE, all the sub-indices were trading in red with Nifty Auto and Nifty PSU Bank down as much as 3.84 per cent.

RIL was the top loser in the Sensex platform, shedding over 4 per cent after the company shelved a proposed deal to sell a 20 per cent stake in its oil refinery and petrochemical business to Saudi Aramco for $15 billion.

It said its energy portfolio has changed with the foray into a new energy business, which would require a re-evaluation of the deal.

Other laggards include Maruti, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank, and Bajaj Finserv.

On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, PowerGrid, Asian Paints, IndusInd Bank, and ITC were among the gainers.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market, as they offloaded shares worth $3,930.62 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

On Thursday, NSE Nifty had closed 133 points lower at 17,764; while BSE Sensex had dropped 372 points to settle at 59,636.

Equity markets were closed on Friday on account of Guru Nanak Jayanti.