Indian shares dropped for a fourth straight session to trade near two-week lows as the BSE Sensex crashed below the 27,000-level ahead of the monthly derivative contracts expiry and as the US Federal Reserve hinted at a possible interest rate hike in December.
“Markets opened the day absolutely flat over Wednesday’s closing levels and remained sideways in Thursday’s session as well amidst lack of market cues,” said Achin Goel, Head of Wealth Management and Financial Planning at Bonanza Portfolio.
Among other factors, concerns over corporate earnings so far, the rupee depreciating by 27 paise against the dollar and a lower opening in European markets also weighed.
The BSE 30-share Sensex after resuming in positive zone soon slipped as participants indulged in squaring-up long positions. The index finally settled 201.62 points or 0.75 per cent down at 26,838.14 its lowest closing since October 14.
The gauge has now lost 632.67 points in four sessions.
The 50-issue NSE too continued its slide for the fourth session and lost 59.45 points or 0.73 per cent to close at 8,111.75. Intra-day, it dipped below the 8,100-mark to hit a low of 8,098.
Weakness in global stocks weighed on sentiment on the domestic bourses. European stocks edged lower in choppy trade after the US Federal Reserve left the door open to an interest rate hike later this calendar year. Key indices like France, Germany and UK were trading lower by 0.10 per cent to 1.01 per cent.
Asian stocks ended lower after the conclusion of a regular two-day monetary policy review on Thursday.
