Sensex, Nifty Finish in Red Despite Paring Early Losses
Nifty fell below the 12,000 mark on the back of escalating geopolitical tensions and projection of 5% GDP growth.
Equity markets closed with minor change on Wednesday, 8 January, as both Sensex and Nifty finished in the red.
30-share BSE Sensex closed at 40,817.74, down 51.73 points while the broader 50-share NSE Nifty lost 27.60 points to close at 12,025.35.
Among Sensex stocks, L&T was the top loser, shedding 2.19 per cent, followed by ONGC, Titan, Sun Pharma, Hero MotoCorp and Infosys.
On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, TCS, Ultratech Cement, Bajaj Finance and ICICI Bank spurted up to 2.74 per cent.
According to analysts, domestic stocks followed global equities that plunged on increasing tensions in the Middle Est after Iran launched missiles targeting US military bases in Iraq in retaliation for the killing of Iran's top general Qasem Soleimani.
Brent crude oil futures rose nearly 0.62 per cent to USD 68.67 per barrel.
The rupee, which skidded 20 paise in opening deals, recovered to trade 3 paise up at 71.78 per US dollar (intra-day).
Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended up to 1.57 per cent lower.
European markets too started on a negative note.
On the domestic front, advance GDP estimates suggesting India's economic growth may drop to an 11-year low of 5 per cent in the current fiscal also kept domestic investors cautious, traders said.
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