Sensex Falls Over 150 Points, Nifty Below 17,100; HUL, Asian Paints Top Drags
The Indian equity benchmarks traded lower in opening deals on Tuesday amid rising crude oil prices. Crude oil prices extended their gains, soaring over 2 per cent to near $120 a barrel early after closing more than 7 per cent higher in the previous session.
The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 173 points or 0.30 per cent to 57,119, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 31 points or 0.18 per cent down to 17,087 in early trade.
Mid- and small-cap shares were trading on a mixed note as Nifty Midcap 100 index edged 0.01 per cent lower and small-cap shares rose 0.15 per cent.
11 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- were trading in the red. Nifty Bank and Nifty FMCG were underperforming the index by falling as much as 0.73 per cent and 1.32 per cent, respectively. However, Nifty IT and Nifty jumped 0.33 per cent and 1.51 per cent, respectively.
On the stock-specific front, Hindustan Unilever was the top Nifty loser as the stock cracked 2.09 per cent to Rs 2,008.40. Asian Paints, UltraTech Cement, M&M and Cipla were also among the laggards.
The overall market breadth stood weak as 1,112 shares were advancing while 1,578 were declining on BSE.
On the 30-share BSE index, HUL, Asian Paints, Nestle India, UltraTech Cement, Axis Bank, Titan and Bajaj Finance were among the top losers.
Sensex had slipped 571 points or 0.99 per cent to close at 57,292 on Monday, while Nifty had moved 169 points or 0.98 per cent lower to settle at 17,118.
