Sensex falls over 200 points in early trade on concerns over weak core industrial growth data, foreign fund outflows

Mumbai: Equity benchmark BSE Sensex on Thursday tanked over 200 points in early trade on concerns over weak core industrial growth data and sustained foreign fund outflows. The 30-share index was trading 205.69 points or 0.55 percent lower at 37,275.43; and the broader Nifty fell 16.15 points or 0.44 percent to 11,069.25. In the Sensex pack, Vedanta took the biggest hit, trading 2.92 percent lower, followed by Tech Mahindra, Yes Bank, Tata Motors and Tata steel. However, Power Grid, IndusInd Bank, ICICI Bank, Asian Paint, Maruti and HCL Tech were trading in the green. [caption id=“attachment_4444277” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] In the previous session, Sensex gained 83.88 points or 0.22 percent to end at 37,481.12. The broader NSE Nifty ended 32.60 points or 0.29 percent up at 11,118.00. The markets continue to witness persistent outflow of foreign funds from equities. Foreign investors sold shares worth Rs 1,497.07 crore on a net basis on Wednesday, as per provisional data with stock exchanges. Growth of eight core industries dropped to 0.2 percent in June, mainly due to the contraction in oil-related sectors as well as cement production, according to official data. The government on Wednesday also revised downwards the growth rate of these eight sectors for May to 4.3 percent from the earlier estimate of 5.1 percent. Overall investor sentiment was weak after the government on Wednesday released the core industries output growth numbers, which dropped to 0.2 percent in June, experts said. Meanwhile, the government’s fiscal deficit touched Rs 4.32 lakh crore for the June quarter, which is 61.4 percent of the budget estimate for 2019-20 fiscal. The US Federal Reserve reduced the benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points to 2.0-2.25 percent on Wednesday for the first time in more than a decade. Elsewhere in Asia, Shanghai Composite Index and Hang Seng were trading lower, while Nikkei and Kospi were in the green in their respective early sessions. US stocks ended on a negative note on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the rupee declined by 32 paise to 69.12 against the US dollar in morning trade. The global oil benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.70 percent to 65.17 per barrel.