Sensex closes at 6-month low, Nifty declines nearly 100 points as shares of oil marketing firms dip

The share markets continued their decline on Tuesday, tracking global trends. The BSE Sensex declined 287.15 points to close at 33,847.23, a six-month low. The National Stock Exchange Nifty fell 98.45 points to finish at 10,146.80.

Meanwhile, the rupee bounced back from the intraday trading to settle almost flat at 73.57 against the dollar. The rupee, which fell 24 paise on Monday and closed at 73.56, opened weak at 73.74 and later fell to 73.82 amid steady capital outflows due to growing geopolitical concerns. However, as crude oil prices retreated and fell 1.93% to $78.29 per barrel, it curbed the decline in the rupee.

The decline in markets was the result of a fall in the shares of oil marketing companies, due to a ratings downgrade by brokerage firm Nomura, Mint reported.

The indices also followed cues from Asian markets, which were hit by diplomatic concerns in Saudi Arabia over the death of a dissident journalist. Two weeks after Jamal Khashoggi went missing in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Riyadh admitted he was killed. United States President Donald Trump said on Monday he was not satisfied with Saudi Arabia’s response, while the United Kingdom, France and Germany have said Saudi Arabia must clarify how Khashoggi died.

Saudi Arabia is a major oil producer and invests heavily in financial markets.

IndusInd Bank was the top gainer on the Sensex. Other major gainers were HDFC, Yes Bank, Bajaj Auto and Power Grid Corporation. The stocks which performed the best on the Nifty were HPCL, Indiabulls Housing Finance, HDFC, IndusInd Bank and Bajaj Auto.

Shares of Asian Paints declined the most on both the Sensex and Nifty. Other major losers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys. On the Nifty, other stocks which fell the most were Sun Pharma, Wipro, Grasim and UltraTech Cement.