Rate sensitives decline after hopes of further rate cuts fade

Bank shares were the top losers with BSE Bankex was down 1.3% and Bank Nifty was down 1.5%

Shares of rate-sensitive sectors with banks emerging as the top losers after the Reserve Bank of India at its monetary policy review today signalled that it would await data on monsoon forecast and keep a check inflation before any further rate cuts.  The central bank also highlighted uptick in global crude oil prices amid geopolitical concerns.

The Reserve Bank of India today reduced the benchmark repo rate, or the rate at which banks borrow from the central bank, by 25 basis points to 7.25% which was in-line with expectations. Meanwhile, it has kept both CRR and SLR rates unchanged.

Further, the central bank has revised its inflation forecast for January 2016 to 6% from 5.8%. The central bank

Bank shares were trading lower amid concerns of sluggish credit growth while asset quality concerns continue to weigh on the sector. The BSE Bankex was down 1.3% while the Bank Nifty was down 1.5%. HDFC Bank, SBI, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank were down 0.9-1.5% each.

BSE Realty index was down 1%. Prestige Estates was down 5.2%, Indiabulls Real Estate was down 2.3% while Godrej Properties, Unitech and DLF were down 0.7-2% each.

Auto shares which had gained post May sales data also witnessed profit taking at higher levels. The BSE Auto index was down 0.5%. Hero MotoCorp was down 3%, Tata Motors dipped 0.9% while Bajaj Auto and Maruti Suzuki were trading with marginal losses.