Sensex Down 100 pts, Nifty Below 17,800; IndusInd Bank Sheds 3%

Equity markets started on a tepid note on Thursday tracking weakness across their global peers after the FOMC minutes showed that officials expect a mild recession in the US later this year due to a fallout of the banking crisis.

The Sensex was down 94.11 points or 0.16 per cent at 60,298.66, and the Nifty was down 22.90 points or 0.13 per cent at 17,789.50. About 1223 shares advanced, 673 shares declined, and 88 shares unchanged.

IndusInd Bank, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, HCL Tech and TCS were among major losers on the Nifty, while gainers were M&M, ONGC, Eicher Motors, Apollo Hospitals and HDFC Life.

The broader markets, meanwhile, outperformed the benchmarks. The BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices rose up to 0.23 per cent.

Sectorally, IT index dropped over 1 per cent as weak results of TCS dampened overall sentiment in the pack. Other indices held nominal gains.

Global Cues

Overnight in the US, the Dow and S&P500 declined 0.11 per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively, while the Nasdaq fell 0.85 per cent.

Asian indices edged lower in early trade this morning with Hang Seng dropping 2 per cent. Nikkei, S&P/ASX 200, and Straits times also fell up to 0.3 per cent.