Bulls take a break after 9 weeks, Sensex down 342 pts

The BSE benchmark Sensex snapped its nine-week winning spree by slipping 342 points on account of profit booking in front line stocks.

The BSE benchmark Sensex snapped its nine-week winning spree by slipping 342 points on account of profit booking in front line stocks.

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A tussle between the market and insurance regulators over unit linked insurance products (ULIPS) also weighed on
investor sentiment in addition to expectations of a rise in key interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its
monetary policy meet next week.

The BSE 30-share index hovered in a range of 17,995.25 and 17,529.55 before concluding the week at 17,591.18, a net fall of 341.96 points or 1.91 per cent after gaining nearly 2,017 points or 12.68 per cent in last nine weeks.

The National Stock Exchange's (NSE) 50-share Nifty also dropped by 99.15 points or 1.85 per cent to 5,262.60 from last weekend's close.

Another negative cue for the markets during the week was a new rule implemented by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), according to which individual Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) would not be allowed to pick up more than 10 per cent equity in an Indian company even through foreign direct investment route.

A rise in inflation to 9.9 per cent in March from 9.89 per cent in the previous month too weighed on the markets,
which expect the RBI to hike key interest rates in its forthcoming policy meeting on April 20.