Market benchmarks tumble on profit booking

Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty closed sharply lower on February 12 amid a rush for profit taking and mixed trends in global markets.

Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty closed sharply lower on February 12 amid a rush for profit taking and mixed trends in global markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex settled 523 points or 0.73% lower at 71,072.49. The benchmark touched the lowest level of 70,922.57 during intra-day trade. The broader NSE Nifty also closed 170.05 points or 0.78% at 21,612.45.

As many as 22 stocks of the 30-share index settled in red while 34 constituents of Nifty50 closed the session with losses. In the Sensex pack, NTPC, Tata Steel, SBI and IndusInd Bank were among the major laggards.

In contrast, Wipro, HCL Tech, Mahindra & Mahindra and Nestle were among the nine stocks that defied the trend. BSE smallcap index fell 3.16% while midcap lost 2.62% and large-cap closed 0.90% lower.

In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 closed 0.9% higher and China's Shanghai Composite went up 1.28%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.83%.

European markets were trading on a mixed note with CAC 40 of France and DAX of Germany rising, while London's FTSE 100 in the negative. Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.50% to $81.78 a barrel on February 12.

“Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) purchased shares worth ₹141.95 crore on Friday,” according to exchange data. On Friday, Sensex climbed 167.06 points or 0.23% to settle at 71,595.49 points while the Nifty gained 64.55 points or 0.30% to close at 21,782.50 points.