Sensex falls over 250 points in early trade; Nifty drops below 11,300

Mumbai, Sep. 9 (PTI): Domestic equity benchmark Sensex tumbled over 250 points in early trade on Wednesday tracking losses in index-heavyweights HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and ITC amid intense selloff in global markets.

The 30-share BSE index was trading 255.26 points or 0.67 per cent lower at 38,110.09; while the NSE Nifty dropped 79 points or 0.70 per cent to 11,238.35.

ONGC was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding around 3 per cent, followed by Tata Steel, SBI, NTPC, ITC and Bajaj Finserv.

On the other hand, Reliance Industries, Asian Paints, Infosys and Tech Mahindra were among the gainers.

In the previous session, Sensex ended 51.88 points or 0.14 per cent lower at 38,365.35; while the NSE Nifty slipped 37.70 points or 0.33 per cent to 11,317.35.

Exchange data showed that foreign institutional investors sold equities worth INR 1,056.52 crore on a net basis on Tuesday.

Domestic equities opened on a negative note tracking weak cues from global equities after late-stage studies of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine candidate were put on temporary hold, traders said.

The company is in the process of investigating whether a recipient’s “potentially unexplained” illness is a side effect of the shot.

Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo were trading with intense losses in mid-session deals.

Stock exchanges on Wall Street witnessed massive selloff in overnight sessions. Global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.90 per cent lower at USD 39.42 per barrel.