Closing Bell: Sensex drops nearly one per cent, Nifty also loses 74 points

Snapping its six-session rising streak, equity benchmark BSE Sensex plunged 335 points on Tuesday, dragged by a massive plunge in Infosys’ shares following a complaint against the company’s chief executive.

The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 334.54 points, or 0.85 per cent, lower at 38,963.84. It hit an intra-day low of 38,924.85 and a high of 39,426.47. The broader NSE Nifty too tumbled 73.50 points, or 0.63 per cent, to settle at 11,588.35.

In the previous session on Friday, the 30-share BSE Sensex closed 246.32 points or 0.63 per cent higher at 39,298.38, while the Nifty rose 75.50 points or 0.65 per cent to settle at 11,661.85.

Domestic financial markets remained closed on Monday due to assembly elections in Maharashtra. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to be net buyers in the capital market, infusing Rs 36.56 crore on Friday, while domestic institutional investors purchased shares worth Rs 586.88 crore, data available with stock exchange showed.

IT major Infosys was the biggest loser in the Sensex pack, plummeting 16.21 per cent after an anonymous group claiming to be employees of the firm placed a whistleblower complaint to the company’s board, accusing CEO Salil Parekh and CFO Nilanjan Roy of indulging in unethical practices to boost short-term revenue and profits.

Other losers were Tata Motors, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech and Bajaj Finance, shedding up to 3.51 per cent. Among the gainers were ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma, Bajaj Auto, HUL and HDFC, rising up to 3.06 per cent.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong Tokyo and Seoul ended on a positive note after US President Donald Trump on Monday said progress in developing the text of a partial trade pact with China means he will likely be able to sign it next month.

Equites in Europe were trading on a mixed note in their respective early deals. Meanwhile, the Indian rupee appreciated by 22 paise to 70.92 against the US dollar intra-day. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.36 per cent to USD 59.17 per barrel.