Sensex at lowest level since January 1

Sensex falls 91 points to end at 19,660; investors cautious ahead of the budget

 

The Sensex fell today for the fifth session in the last six sessions, as renewed worries about the Euro zone hit global markets, spurring continued profit-taking in recent outperformers such as ITC Ltd and ICICI Bank.

Domestic shares have struggled ever since the Reserve Bank of India surprised investors with a cautious stance on future rate cuts on January 29, dashing some of the optimism that sustained monetary easing would boost economic growth this year.

Investors are also cautious ahead of the budget, to be unveiled later this month, which is seen as a key test of commitment to shoring up finances.

The Sensex fell 0.46 per cent, or 91.37 points, to end at 19,659.82, marking its lowest close since January 1. The index has fallen 1.94 per cent in six sessions. The broader Nifty fell 0.51 per cent, or 30.35 points, to end at 5,956.90. Cigarette maker ITC Ltd fell 1.56 per cent, after gaining 7.3 per cent in January. ICICI Bank Ltd shares fell 1.33 per cent, its third fall in four sessions.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd shares fell 3.5 per cent, extending their fall after the company's October-December earnings on Friday disappointed investors.

Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd ended 5.2 per cent lower, after the company reported a net loss of Rs 31.17 crore in the October-December quarter.

Jubilant Foodworks Ltd shares fall 8.5 per cent, after its December-quarter same store sales grew by 16 per cent versus expectations of 20 per cent.

UCO Bank shares ended five per cent lower after reporting disappointing asset quality and rising provisioning expenses.

However, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd rose as 4.14 per cent after the US Food and Drug Administration approved its generic version of ovarian cancer drug Doxil, made by Johnson & Johnson in the US market.

Shares in Sun also gained after subsidiary Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd posted a 42 per cent growth in October-December net profit.

Another blue chip drug maker, Cipla Ltd, gained one per cent ahead of its third-quarter earnings tomorrow.