The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Tuesday tanked over 253 points in early trade as foreign funds pressed fresh selling in line with weak global markets after the Royal Bank of Scotland posted the largest loss in the UK history.
The 30-share barometer, which had gained 5.98 points on Monday, lost 253.89 points to 9,075.68 in early trade with all the sectoral indices trading in negative territory with losses up to 2.96 per cent.
The 50-share National Stock Exchange Nifty tumbled by 78.15 points to 2,768.05 in early trade.
Stock brokers said trading sentiment turned distinctly weak as global financial crisis deepened after the Royal Bank of Scotland unveiled unprecedented loss in the British Corporate sector, triggering massive sell-off by foreign funds as well as retail investors on the domestic bourses.
Banking stocks led by the largest lender, State Bank of India, were under pressure and dragged the Sensex down. SBI shares fell by 2.78 per cent at Rs 1,115.45, ICICI Bank shed 2.92 per cent at Rs 401, while HDFC Bank lost 3.24 per cent at Rs 909.50.
Other weak shares were Reliance Industries by 2.95 per cent at Rs 1,193.35, Reliance Infra by 2.73 per cent at Rs 520.50, Rcom by 3.41 per cent at Rs 178.65, Tata Steel by 2.71 per cent at Rs 202.55, Sterlite Industries by 2.85 per cent at Rs 262.95 and Infosys Technologies by 2.11 per cent at Rs 1,233.
{{/usCountry}}Other weak shares were Reliance Industries by 2.95 per cent at Rs 1,193.35, Reliance Infra by 2.73 per cent at Rs 520.50, Rcom by 3.41 per cent at Rs 178.65, Tata Steel by 2.71 per cent at Rs 202.55, Sterlite Industries by 2.85 per cent at Rs 262.95 and Infosys Technologies by 2.11 per cent at Rs 1,233.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei fell by 2.95 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 3.10 per cent in early trade today.