In early trading on Tuesday, equity benchmark indices experienced a downturn following a four-day rally, influenced by negative cues from global markets and outflows of foreign funds. The 30-share BSE Sensex, after achieving record highs, dropped by 297.97 points to 73,574.32 due to profit-taking, while the Nifty declined by 86.05 points to 22,319.55.
Among the Sensex firms, HCL Technologies, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI Bank, Infosys, Axis Bank and Reliance Industries were the major laggards. Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, State Bank of India and NTPC were among the gainers. In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong were trading lower while Shanghai quoted in the green.
On Monday, the US markets closed in negative territory. The global oil benchmark, Brent crude, experienced a slight dip of 0.18%, reaching USD 82.64 per barrel. Exchange data indicated that Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold off equities worth Rs 564.06 crore on the same day.
Extending its rally to the fourth straight session on Monday, the BSE benchmark climbed 66.14 points or 0.09 per cent to settle at an all-time high of 73,872.29 points. The Nifty went up by 27.20 points or 0.12 per cent to settle at a lifetime peak of 22,405.60.