Sensex falls over 700 points on foreign outflow concerns

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The BSE Sensex and Nifty fell over 2 percent on Thursday to their lowest in more than 10 weeks as blue chips slumped on worries foreign investors may trim positions on risk aversion after Saudi Arabia launched air strikes in Yemen.

Foreign investors have been heavy buyers of Indian shares since early 2014, making any significant exits a particular risk to Indian markets.

The BSE Sensex fell as much as 2.6 percent while the Nifty lost 2.4 percent, marking their lowest intraday level since Jan. 14.

Blue chips heavily owned by foreign investors led the falls. Housing Development Finance slumped 5.6, while ICICI Bank lost 3.6 percent.

 

(Reporting by Abhishek Vishnoi; Editing by Anand Basu)