Sensex down 61 points in opening trade

The BSE Sensex slipped almost 61 points in opening trade on heavy selling in metals, realty energy and auto stocks amid sustained capital outflows by foreign funds.

Asian shares drifted lower after US President Donald Trump said he was not satisfied with bilateral trade talks with China that occurred last week.

Meanwhile, China announced on Tuesday that it would reduce tariffs on some vehicles to 15 % from as much as 25 %. Tariffs on certain automotive parts would also be cut.

The rupee deprecating against the dollar also dampened sentiment.

The 30-share index dropped 60.79 points or 0.17 % to 34,590.45. The gauge had gained 35.11 points in the previous session.

In similar fashion, the NSE Nifty fell 19.80 points, or 0.18 % to 10,516.90.

Sectoral indices led by metal, realty, oil and gas and auto were trading in the negative zone, falling up to 1.29 %.

Major losers were Tata Steel, IndusInd Bank, Dr Reddy’s, Hero Motocorp, M&M, HDFC Ltd, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Auto, Asian Paints, Adani Ports, Bharti Airtel, Kotak Bank, HDFC Bank, Wipro, ONGC and RIL, falling up to 2.45 %.

Brokers said sentiment remained weak in the absence of any positive trigger amid sustained capital outflows.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 1,651.63 crore while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,496.83 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.

In the Asian region, Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.08 % and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 1.08 % in early trade.

China’s Shanghai Composite index too was down 0.89 %.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.72 % lower in yesterday’s trade as uncertainty over trade policy and other geopolitical issues weighed on sentiment.