Sensex slumps 617 pts; Nifty falls below 17,000

Benchmark indices tumbled for the second day in a row on Monday, with the Sensex tanking 617.26 points following heavy selling in market major Reliance Industries and negative global cues.

Unabated foreign fund outflows added to the weak sentiment.

The BSE benchmark Sensex dived 617.26 points or 1.08 per cent to end at 56,579.89. During the day, it plummeted 840.28 points or 1.46 per cent to 56,356.87.

The broader NSE Nifty declined 218 points or 1.27 per cent to 16,953.95.

Among the 30-share Sensex pack, Tata Steel, Tech Mahindra, NTPC, Reliance Industries, Titan, ITC, Larsen & Toubro and Sun Pharma were the major laggards.

In contrast, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Nestle, Maruti Suzuki and Bharti Airtel were the gainers.

Asian markets in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul and Shanghai settled significantly lower.

Markets in Europe were also trading in the negative zone in the afternoon session.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude tumbled 4.44 per cent to USD 101.92 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors continued their selling spree, offloading shares worth Rs 2,461.72 crore on Friday, according to stock exchange data.

Rupee dives 22 paise to close at 76.64 against US dollar

The rupee declined by 22 paise to close at 76.64 against the US dollar on Monday, tracking a strong greenback overseas and a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity markets.

Heavy forex outflows amid growing worries over global growth weighed on the local units, traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened lower at 76.58 against the American currency, and finally settled for the day at 76.64.

During the trading session, the rupee witnessed an intra-day high of 76.55 and a low of 76.77. On Friday, the rupee had closed 25 paise lower at 76.42.

The US dollar surged to a two-year high levels on strong risk-averse sentiment in global markets. Chinese yuan dropped for a third day in a row on fears of slowdoan in China due to resurging Covid cases and subsequent lockdowns in main cities.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.34 per cent higher at 101.56.

"The Indian rupee declined on Monday amid risk-off sentiments in global markets. There are increased expectations that US Federal Reserve may hike interest rates by 50 bps in upcoming FOMC meet next week as indicated by Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech last week.

"There are expectations of further aggressive rate hikes in the coming months, too," said Praveen Singh, AVP- Fundamental currencies and Commodities analyst Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Significant foreign fund outflows have also dented the domestic currency, while the sharp decline in crude oil prices have cushioned the downside for the rupee.

"We expect Rupee to remain under pressure on deteriorating global risk sentiments due to escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine, and hawkish US Federal Reserve. Concerns over resurgence of COVID-19 may also weigh on Rupee. Rupee may trade in the range of Rs 76-77.20 in the next couple of sessions," Singh added.