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At 11:34AM, the 30-share Sensex was down 252 points at 18,789 and the 50-share Nifty was down 70 points at 5,690.
In Asia, Japanese stocks dived into bear market territory and Asian shares hit new 2013 lows on Thursday as the prospect of reduced stimulus from central banks rattled investors, triggering a broad sell-off from riskier assets. Shanghai COmposite was down 3.4%, Hang Seng dropped 2.9% while Straits Times, Kospi and Taiwan Weighted were down 1-2% each.
Auto Index was the top loser among the sectoral indices on the BSE down 2.5% along with IT, FMCG, Healthcare, Bankex, Oil and Gas, Realty indices.
FMCG major ITC was among the top Sensex losers down 2.5% on concerns that volume growth would come under pressure as rising inflation reduces the purchasing power of consumers.
Shares of software exporters were down on profit taking after recent gains following the sharp fall in the rupee. TCS and Infosys were down 1.5% each.
In the financial segment, HDFC Bank, HDFC and ICICI Bank were down 1-1.5% each.
Sector wise, auto shares such as Tata Motors, Mah & Mah, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Auto and Hero MotoCorp were among the top losers on concerns on decling sales in May.
Among other shares, Shares of Punjab National Bank (PNB), Bank of Baroda (BOB), Jammu and Kashmir Bank and Monsanto India are trading lower by over 3% each on turning ex-dividend today.
In the broader markets, the BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap indices were down 1% each.
Market breadth continues to remain weak with 1,374 declines and 514 advances on the BSE.
