Sensex tumbles 450 points, gives up 65K as RBI flags inflaton risks; Nifty below 19,300
Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at a global central bank gathering. Selling was seen across all sectors.
The BSE Sensex was trading 445 points or 0.68% lower at 64,807.
Nifty50 was trading at 19,268, down 118 points or 0.61% at around 9.16 a.m.
Among Sensex stocks, Jio Financial Services, UltraTech Cement, M&M, Wipro, Reliance, Axis Bank, and Infosys opened with cuts, while only Asian Paints and Power Grid opened with gains.
India's central bank, in the minutes of its latest monetary policy meeting, reiterated its focus on closely monitoring the impact of a recent spike in food prices and the liquidity overhang in the banking system on domestic inflation.
Among individual stocks, Paytm opened 4% higher amid a block deal in the counter. Jio Financial Services shares opened with a 5% lower circuit for the 5th straight session.
Sector-wise, Nifty PSU Bank declined 0.71%, and Nifty Metal fell 0.73%.
Financial, auto, FMCG, pharma, and IT sectors also opened lower. Domestically focused mid-caps fell 0.37%, while small-caps rose 0.05%.
Experts View
«The message from the Fed chief Jerome Powell tonight will be keenly watched for any clues on the future trajectory of interest rates in the US.
The Fed chief is unlikely to indicate that the rate hiking cycle is coming to an end,» V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services said.
«An unhealthy trend in the market is the sustained rise in the prices of many small and microcap stocks. Valuations in the segment are approaching risky levels.
Safety is now in largecaps,» Vijayakumar suggested.
Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities said, «Nifty could now remain in the 19253-19580 band.»
Global Markets
Asian markets declined on Friday. Wall
