Shell firm order, North Korea tension drag Sensex below 32,000

It was a third straight session of loss for stocks on Wednesday, as the benchmark BSE Sensex took a hit of 216 points, or 0.68 per cent, to close at a three-week low below the 32,000-mark on growing sense of disquiet following market regulator Sebi’s crackdown against suspected shell companies.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) clamped down on 331 such companies on Monday, directing exchanges to take action against them.

Investors also ran for cover after a flare-up in tension between the US and North Korea over the latter’s ballistic missile programme. They fear for the worse