Sensex, Nifty trade little changed amid fund outflow worries

By Chris Thomas

(Reuters) - Indian shares were little changed on Tuesday amid concerns of foreign fund outflows after the rupee hit a new low in its recent record-setting spree, while gains in IT stocks on the back of a weaker currency underpinned the market.

The currency, which declined to a fresh trough of 71.375 per dollar on Tuesday, has been Asia's worst performing currency so far this year with a drop of more than 10 percent due to higher oil prices, turbulence in emerging markets and simmering global trade tensions.

"The rupee is the main culprit," said AK Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital, adding that the depreciating currency was forcing fund outflows.

Foreign investors sold equities worth a net $409 million on Monday after they offloaded $38.7 million last week.

The broader Nifty NSE index was down 0.12 percent at 11,568 as of 0558 GMT, while the benchmark Sensex edged 0.02 percent higher at 38,319.28.

Consumer and financial stocks were the top losers with ITC Ltd and Hindustan Unilever Ltd shedding as much as 2 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively.

Airline stocks also fell on higher overnight crude prices and after an aviation consulting firm forecast combined losses for domestic carriers of up to $1.9 billion this financial year.

Jet Airways (India) Ltd fell 3.6 percent, while InterGlobe Aviation Ltd dropped 2.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the Nifty IT Index climbed 2.4 percent to a record high. Infosys Ltd rose 4.4 percent to an all-time high as it traded ex-bonus, while Tata Consultancy Services Ltd jumped 2 percent and became the second Indian company to reach a market capitalisation of 8 trillion rupees ($112.53 billion) after Reliance Industries Ltd.

($1 = 71.0925 rupees)

(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Gaurav Dogra; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)