By Debiprasad Nayak
MUMBAI--Indian shares joined a selloff in global markets Tuesday
as crude oil prices continued to fall and concerns of a slowdown in
the global economy grew.
The S&P BSE Sensex fell 3.1% to 26,987.46 points, its
biggest percentage fall since September 2013. The National Stock
Exchange's Nifty index also fell 3% to 8,127.35.
"Foreign as well domestic investors have now become cautious of
putting more money as they fear India is not immune to the global
crisis," said Neeraj Dewan, director at Quantum Securities. They
are now watching for corporate earnings, which kickoff on Friday,
for further cues, he added.
Earlier Tuesday, oil prices extended their slump with both Brent
and U.S. crude futures trading at 5-1/2-year lows amid concerns of
a supply glut. Analysts said the sharp decline in energy prices has
stoked concerns of deflation in many global economies.
Energy and metal companies were among the biggest losers on the
Sensex as investors fretted their profits could be hurt due to
lower commodity prices. The oil & gas index ended down 4.2%,
while the metal index declined 3.5%.
Among the major losers from the 30 Sensex stocks, Tata Motors
fell 4.4% as sales of Jaguar Land Rover in the U.S. lagged behind
the overall rise in auto sales in the region. Growth at Jaguar Land
Rover has contributed to the bulk of profits of the Indian auto
maker in the recent past.
Technology companies extended losses after analysts forecast
muted revenue growth in the fiscal third quarter. Tata Consultancy
Services fell 3.6%, Wipro lost 2.2%, while Infosys declined 2%.
However, Hindustan Unilever bucked the trend, gaining 1.9% after
Deutsche Bank upgraded it to Buy from Hold.
Indian drug maker Jubilant Life Sciences also closed 3.7%
higher, one of the handful of stocks to close in the black, after
it received the final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration for an Abbreviated New Drug Application of the
generic version of Novartis' blockbuster hypertension drug
Diovan.
Meanwhile, CLSA said it expects the Sensex to climb to 31,500 by
December on the back of a 17% rise in earnings this year.
In the currency market, the rupee weakened against the U.S.
dollar. In late spot market trading, a dollar was buying 63.60
rupees compared with 63.41 rupees Monday.
Write to Debiprasad Nayak at debi.nayak@wsj.com
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