Date:27/06/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/06/27/stories/2006062704020100.htm

Back Volatile Sensex sheds 371

Our Bureau

Concerns of imminent rise in global interest rates reflect in indices

Mumbai , June 26

The stock market registered the biggest fall in last two weeks in a volatile session amid concerns that an imminent rise in global interest rates would force foreign funds to sell shares in emerging markets, including India.

The BSE-30 Sensex, which opened higher, saw a swing of 460 points intra-day before closing at 10,042.06 points, down 370.87 points or 3.56 per cent from the previous close.

The NSE's S&P CNX Nifty Index fell by 107.1 points or 3.51 per cent to end at 2,943.20.

Significantly, FIIs were net sellers for only Rs 1.19 crore on Monday, according to provisional data from the NSE.

All the indices ended in the red, with the BSE Metal Index alone losing 7.05 per cent.

Market breadth was also overwhelmingly negative at 2,020 declines versus just 405 advancing stocks.

All stocks on the Sensex, except HDFC Bank, ended in the red.

Tata Steel (down 6.88 per cent to Rs 495.75), Hindalco (6.70 per cent to Rs 160.90), Tata Motors (5.79 per cent to Rs 730.45), and HDFC (5.18 per cent to Rs 1,046.25), led the fall.

"The stock market is trying to stabilise at a certain level. Rising inflation figures and the surge in yields in the G-Sec market point to another round of interest rate hike by the RBI.

"We expect the Nifty index to settle at another 100 points on the downside," said Mr Janish Shah, Head (Equity Research), Networth Stock Broking Ltd.

Small and mid-cap stocks were also battered on Monday.

The BSE Small Cap Index fell by 4.76 per cent and the BSE Mid Cap Index by 4.26 per cent. Over 520 stocks, almost all of them from the small and mid-cap sector, hit the lower circuit. Over 120 stocks hit the upper circuit.