BackSensex falls; ITC slumps most in about 10 months
Sensex lost 0.3% to end at 25,031.32, while Nifty fell 0.24% to end at 7,493.35
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Mumbai: The BSE Sensex and Nifty fell for a fourth straight session on Monday, marking their lowest close in 2-1/2 weeks as ITC Ltd slumped the most in 10 months on tax worries, while concerns over high oil prices feeding inflation continued to weigh.
Brent crude was up at around $115 a barrel on Monday, supported by worries about potential disruptions to supply from Iraq where Sunni insurgents took control of strongholds along the border with Syria at the weekend.
Falls also tracked European stocks after euro zone business activity data showed growth slowing, with France a notable laggard, in contrast with upbeat numbers from China.
Also, overseas investors sold shares worth Rs220 crore ($36.85 million) on Friday, provisional exchange data showed.
Investors also turned cautious ahead of the new government’s budget on 10 July, which will hold details of the borrowing plan for 2014-15.
“There is an uncertainty and people are waiting for budget for clarity on major policy issues. However, market is optimistic and is expecting some real good measures. That is why we are not seeing any heavy selling," said Suresh Parmar, head, institutional equities at KJMC Capital Markets.
The Sensex lost 0.3%, or 74.19 points, to end at 25,031.32.
The Nifty fell 0.24%, or 18.10 points, to end at 7,493.35, closing below the psychologically important 7,500 level.
Both indexes marked their lowest close since 5 June.
India’s biggest cigarette manufacturer ITC slumped 6.2%, its biggest single-day fall since 3 September, 2013, on a media report that government may raise taxes on cigarettes aggressively in the upcoming budget, dealers said.
Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd fell 3.8% while Infosys Ltd lost 2.5%.
Among other blue-chips, United Spirits Ltd fell 3.2% while Hindustan Unilever Ltd ended down 1.1%.
UltraTech Cement Ltd fell 0.6% after the government on Friday pushed through a steep 6.5% hike in rail freight effective from 25 June.
However, sugar refiners gained after the food minister said on Monday that India would raise import duty on sugar to 40% from 15%, as the government tries to revive business at mills that owe farmers around $1.84 billion.
Bajaj Hindusthan Ltd surged 9.9%, Dhampur Sugar Mills Ltd advanced 8.2%, Shree Renuka Sugars Ltd rose 10.3%, and Balrampur Chini Mills Ltd gained 6.9%.
Essar Oil Ltd rose 5% and AstraZeneca Pharma India Ltd gained 1.9% on plans of delisting the companies from Indian exchanges. Reuters
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