Sensex down by 100 points on selling pressure

Shaken by the series of blasts in Mumbai on Wednesday night, the Sensex, which had gained 184.40 points in the previous session, fell by 144.82 points, or to 18,451.20 in the first five minutes of trade on Thursday. File photo

The BSE benchmark Sensex declined by 100 points in early trade due to selling pressure in the IT sector after Moody’s Investors Service said it may cut the United States’ triple-A credit rating.

Bomb blasts in three places in Mumbai on Wednesday evening and weak Asian cues also dampened the market sentiment.

Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 23 stocks fell, while the remaining rose.

The BSE benchmark Sensex resumed lower at 18,563.69 and dropped further to 18,449.23 before quoting at 18,496.06 at 10.15 a.m, showing a net loss of 99.96 points, or 0.54 per cent, from its last close.

The NSE’w 50-share Nifty also moved down by 27.55 points, or 0.49 per cent, to 5,557.90 at 1015 hours.

The major losers were M&M (down 1.77 per cent), Infosys (1.66 per cent), Hero Honda (1.20 per cent), ONGC (1.10 per cent), Rel Com (0.97 per cent), Wipro (0.89 per cent) and Hindustan Lever (0.86 per cent).

Asian stocks fell in early trade after Moody’s on Wednesday said it may cut the United States’ triple-A debt rating. The key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea were down by about 0.14 per cent to 0.72 per cent, while indices in China and Indonesia rose by between 0.06 per cent and 0.14 per cent.