Mumbai, May 21 (IANS) A key index of the Indian equities markets dived more than 300 points, ending trading Thursday in the red as consolidation set in.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 14,043.38 points, ended at 13,736.54 points - 324.12 points or 2.31 percent - below Wednesday's close.
The S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) followed the Sensex to also end in the red, slipping 1.39 percent to 4,210.95 points.
Broader market indices, which were doing better for most parts of the day, ceded gains with the BSE midcap index ending trade around its last closing figure, and the BSE smallcap index closing 2.58 percent higher.
The Sensex touched an intra-day high of 14,089.51 points and a low of 13,704.43.
Of the 13 sectoral indices on the BSE, the index for capital goods, banking and auto were depressed as these stocks came under selling pressure, while PSU and oil and gas stocks gained the most.
'This was quite expected. Markets were set to correct by 300 points or so after the huge rally we had on Monday,' said SMC Capitals equity head Jagannadham Thunuguntla.
There were six gainers on the Sensex, prominent among them being ONGC, up 8.41 percent at Rs.1,074.70; Reliance Communications, up 4.52 percent at Rs.322.30; Ranbaxy, up 2.66 percent at Rs.233.65; and NTPC, up 1.87 percent at Rs.212.25.
Losers included L&T, down 8.59 percent at Rs.1,242.60; Maruti Suzuki, down 6.93 percent at Rs.971.10; ICICI Bank, down 5.15 percent at Rs.672.30; and HDFC, down 5.01 percent at Rs.2,099.30.
The overall market breadth was positive, with 2,097 scrips advancing, 627 declining and 43 remaining unchanged.
Data with the market watchdog, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), showed foreign funds sold about $49.1 million of equities compared to shares worth $1,062.3 million they bought Wednesday.
The NSE's Volatility Index - a measure of the market's expectation of volatility over the short term - stood at 50.79 points as of Wednesday, significantly higher than the 35-point mark that indicates risk.
Other Asian markets were also in the red, with a key index of Tokyo markets, the Nikkei, shutting shop 80.49 points in the negative at 9,264.15 points.
The Hang Seng, the primary index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, also fell 276.35 points to 17,199.49 points.
European markets were not doing any better with the FTSE in Britain ruling 93.79 points down to 4,374.62 points, and its French peer CAC 40 trading 48.47 points lower at 3,254.9 points.
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