Stocks retreat on global rout; Sensex plunges 407 points, Nifty ends below 10,500

Mumbai: The BSE Sensex slumped over 407 points to end at one-month low of 34,005.76 and the Nifty ended below 10,500 mark due to widespread sell-off after global rout in stocks returned on worries about rising US interest rates. Moreover, continuous outflows by foreign funds hit the trading sentiments. The sell-off followed another battering on Wall Street, where the benchmark Dow suffered its second-heaviest daily points fall after key US Treasury bond yields spiked. The BSE 30-share Sensex opening lower and later slipped below the 34,000-mark to hit a low of 33,849.65. [caption id=“attachment_4343711” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] The index recovered briefly to 34,070.73 before dropping again to close lower by 407.40 points, or 1.18 percent, at 34,005.76. This is the weakest closing since 4 January when it had closed at 33,969.64. The index had recovered 330.45 points in the last session. The NSE Nifty settled at 10,454.95, down 121.90 points, or 1.15 percent. It moved between 10,398.20 and 10,480.20 in day trade. On a weekly basis, the BSE Sensex recorded a steep fall of 1,060.99 points, or 3.02 percent, while the broader Nifty lost 305.65 points, or 2.84 percent. Meanwhile, Sensex plunged 2,438.22 points, bringing the index down 6.69 percent from the lifetime record of 36,443.98 reached on 29 January. Nifty also retreated by 716.60 points, or 6.41 percent from record peak of 11,171.55 hit on 29 January. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) offloaded shares worth Rs 2,297.09 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth a net Rs 2,373.59 crore on Thursday, provisional data showed.