Sensex plunges 1,172 points as Infosys, HDFC twins play spoilsport

Mumbai, April 18

Equity benchmarks went into a tailspin on Monday, with the Sensex tumbling 1,172.19 points, dragged down by heavyweights Infosys and HDFC twins amid a weak trend in Asian markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 1,172.19 points or 2.01 per cent to settle at 57,166.74. During the day, it plummeted 1,496.54 points or 2.56 per cent to 56,842.39.

The broader NSE Nifty plunged 302 points or 1.73 per cent to finish at 17,173.65.

Infosys, HDFC, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, Wipro and TCS were the major laggards in the Sensex pack.

In contrast, NTPC, Tata Steel, Maruti, Titan, Nestle, Titan and M&M were among the gainers.

Infosys plummeted 7.16 per cent after its Q4 results failed to enthuse investors.

HDFC Bank declined 4.53 per cent to Rs 1,398.50 even as the largest domestic private sector lender on Saturday posted a 22.8 per cent jump in its standalone net profit at Rs 10,055.2 crore for the quarter ended March 2022.

Meanwhile, the wholesale price-based inflation spiked to a four-month high of 14.55 per cent in March on rising prices of crude oil and other commodities due to disruption in global supply chain in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war, a development that may prompt the RBI to raise interest rates to contain price rise.

In Asia, markets in Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo settled lower. Hong Kong was closed for a holiday.

International oil benchmark Brent crude slipped 0.18 per cent to USD 111.5 per barrel.

On Wednesday, the Sensex declined 237.44 points or 0.41 per cent to settle at 58,338.93. The NSE Nifty dipped 54.65 points or 0.31 per cent to finish at 17,475.65.

Stock markets were closed on Thursday for Mahavir Jayanti and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti, as well as on Friday on account of Good Friday.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded shares worth a net Rs 2,061.04 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.