Mumbai April 13 (IANS) Disappointing macro-economic data points and lower revenue guidance from an IT major dragged the Indian equity markets lower on Thursday.
Besides massive outflows of foreign funds and rising geopolitical tensions weighed heavy on investors sentiment.
The wider 51-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) dipped by 52.65 points or 0.57 per cent to close at 9 150.80 points.
The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE closed lower by 182.03 points or 0.61 per cent.
The S&P BSE Sensex which opened at 29 637.12 points closed at 29 461.45 points from Wednesday s close at 29 643.48 points.
The Sensex touched a high of 29 660.48 points and a low of 29 442.26 points during the intra-day trade.
The BSE market breadth was tilted towards the bears -- with 1 482 declines and 1 421 advances.
The broader markets ended the day s trade on a flat note. The S&P BSE mid-cap index inched up by 0.03 per cent while the small-cap index closed up by 0.19 per cent.
Markets ended lower on Thursday for the second consecutive session. The Sensex and the Nifty both hit their two-week closing lows Deepak Jasani Head - Retail Research HDFC Securities told IANS.
Sentiment was subdued after domestic data showed that industrial production contracted in February and consumer price inflation edged up in March. Weak global cues also weighed on market sentiment.
Sector-wise the S&P BSE IT index plunged by 237.10 points the automobile index receded by 171.31 points and the capital goods index edged lower by 169.39 points.
On the other hand oil and gas index augmented by 146.15 points healthcare index surged by 98.64 points and energy index was up 26.47 points.
Major Sensex gainers on Thursday were: Sun Pharma up 1.39 per cent at Rs 692.30; PowerGrid up 0.94 per cent at Rs 199.40; Reliance Industries up 0.75 per cent at Rs 1 364.35; HDFC up 0.61 per cent at Rs 1 474.85; and Asian Paints up 0.49 per cent at Rs 1 077.65.
Major Sensex losers were: Infosys down 3.86 per cent at Rs 931.40; Bharti Airtel down 3.03 per cent at Rs 340.55; Tata Steel down 2.92 per cent at Rs 464; Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) down 2.77 per cent at Rs 2 327.85; and Tata Motors down 2.63 per cent at Rs 452.95.
--IANS
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Disappointing macro-data, Infosys Q4 result drag equities lower (Roundup)
