Shares slump to over one-month low as banks slid

Shares of Axis Bank dropped as much as 2.6% after its third-quarter profit slumped due to a surge in provisions for bad loans

Indian shares fell on Thursday as banking stocks declined and broader Asian markets tracked weakness on Wall Street, with private-sector lender Axis Bank hitting a near one-month low after reporting a drop in its quarterly profit.

HDFC Bank and Housing Development Finance Corp were the top drags to the Nifty 50 index, falling 2.5% and 2.2%, respectively. (Bloomberg)

The blue-chip Nifty was down 0.82% at 13,853.25 by 0347 GMT, after falling as much as 1.2% to its lowest level since Dec. 24. The benchmark Sensex slid 0.92% to 46,973.28.

Shares of Axis Bank dropped as much as 2.6% after its third-quarter profit slumped due to a surge in provisions for bad loans. The Nifty Bank index shed 1.3%.

HDFC Bank and Housing Development Finance Corp were the top drags to the Nifty 50 index, falling 2.5% and 2.2%, respectively.

Investors now await results from automaker Maruti Suzuki India and InterGlobe Aviation Ltd — the operator of the country's largest airline IndiGo.