Sensex down 137 points in early trade on weak Asian cues

The BSE Sensex slipped over 137 points to 35,325.98 in early trade today on heavy selling in power, realty, oil & gas and banking stocks amid sustained capital outflows by foreign funds.

A deprecating rupee against the dollar also dampened the sentiment.

Moreover, decline in Asian stocks after the mixed close on Wall Street overnight and rising crude oil prices amid sustained capital outflows, influenced the sentiment here, brokers said.

Oil prices rose today as Venezuela struggled to meet its supply obligations, and also due to the ongoing voluntary output cuts led by producer cartel OPEC.

Brent crude futures were at USD 77.45 per barrel, up 13 cents, or 0.20 per cent. WTI crude futures were up 19 cents, or 0.30 per cent at USD 66.14 a barrel.

The 30-share index dropped 137.10 points or 0.38 per cent to 35,325.98. The gauge had gained 559.87 points in the previous two sessions.

In a similar fashion, the NSE Nifty fell 50.65 points, or 0.47 per cent to 10,717.70.

Sectoral indices led by power, realty, oil and gas, banking, PSU, consumer durables and infrastructure were trading in the negative zone, falling up to 0.93 per cent.

Major losers were power grid, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Yes Bank, RIL, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, HDFC Ltd, Asian Paints, M&M, Hero Motorocorp, Bajaj Auto, SBI, NTPC, Wipro and Bharti Airtel, falling up to 2.05 per cent.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 525.40 crore yesterday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,197.89 crore as per provisional data.

In the Asian region, Japan's Nikkei fell 0.20 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 1.30 per cent in early trade. China's Shanghai Composite index too was down 1.29 per cent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.38 per cent higher in yesterday's trade.