Sensex sinks 1,172 pts, Nifty below 17,200; Infosys tanks 7%, HDFC Bank 5%

Dismal March quarter earnings by HDFC Bank and Infosys, coupled with global headwinds such as likely aggressive rate hikes amid rising inflation, soaring bond yields, and resurgence in Covid-19 cases in parts of the world, weighed on investor confidence on Monday.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex tanked nearly 1,500 points intra-day to hit a low of 56,842. It, however, erased losses mildly to end at 57,167, down 1,172 points or 2 per cent. On the NSE, the Nifty50 tumbled about 400 points intra-day to slip below the 17,100-mark. It ended at 17,174, down 302 points or 1.7 per cent.

Infosys was the biggest laggard on the 30-pack index as it shed 7.2 per cent. The stock reported its sharpest intra-day fall in past two years. Earlier, on March 23, 2020, Infosys had plunged 12 per cent in the intra-day trade on the BSE, data shows. READ MORE

Similarly, shares of HDFC Bank cracked about 4.7 per cent after the lender's operating perfornmance hit multi-year low. READ MORE

Check other gainers and losers on the index here

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices slipped aboput 1 per cent. Sectorally,the Nifty IT index plunged over 4 per cent, the Nifty PSU Bank index 2.3 per cent, and the Nifty Financial Services and Bank indices up to 2 per cent. The Nifty FMCG index, on the other hand, added 0.7 per cent.

Key reasons for market fall

The sacrosanct support of '20-day EMA' is positioned at 17,450 for the Nifty, which coincides with the breakout point of the previous congestion zone. Till the time Nifty holds 17,400 – 1,200, we remain hopeful of some recovery. READ MORE

Global markets

Asia markets struggled for direction on Monday, with investors reacting to the release of Chinese economic data, including first-quarter gross domestic product figures. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 1.08 per cent to close at 26,799.71 as shares of Fast Retailing declined 1.25 per cent. The Topix index shed 0.86 per cent to 1,880.08.

Mainland Chinese stocks closed mixed, with the Shanghai composite down 0.49 per cent to 3,195.52 and the Shenzhen component climbing 0.368 per cent to 11,691.47.

Meanwhile, the benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield rose Monday to a level not seen in more than three years, as traders continued to assess rising inflation.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose 5 basis points to 2.866 per cent, a level last seen in late 2018. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond jumped 2 basis points to 2.942 per cent.