Sensex, Nifty tank nearly 1%; HDFC Bank drags

BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty plummet as HDFC Bank leads losses, while some stocks see gains amid global market trends.

Equity benchmark BSE Sensex tumbled nearly 700 points to sink below the 79,000 level on Tuesday (August 13), extending its losses for the second straight day due to selling pressure in HDFC Bank, SBI and ITC amid fresh foreign capital outflows.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 692.89 points or 0.87% to settle at 78,956.03. During the day, it tanked 759.54 points or 0.95% to 78,889.38.

The NSE Nifty slumped 208 points or 0.85% to 24,139.

From the 30 Sensex firms, HDFC Bank declined over 3%. Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India, Tata Motors, Power Grid and JSW Steel were the other laggards.

In contrast, Titan, HCL Tech, Nestle, Sun Pharma, Reliance and Mahindra & Mahindra were the gainers.

"The MSCI rebalancing is unfolding as anticipated, leading to mixed reactions among stocks - some are seeing gains, while others are experiencing profit-booking. A key focus is HDFC Bank, which will see an increased weight, though with a lower adjustment factor. Consequently, the inflows will occur in two tranches, amounting to over USD 1.8 billion.

"HDFC Bank is currently under pressure after outperforming the market in the days leading up to the MSCI rebalancing, driven by expectations despite its weak earnings. The stock is now facing profit-booking as investors react to the phased inflows," said Santosh Meena, Head of Research, Swastika Investmart Ltd.