Sensex ends 354 points lower, Nifty below 11,600; Bharti Airtel top loser

It also lowered India’s growth forecast by 20 basis points to 7.3 percent for the current financial year, citing the National Accounts Statistics data, which indicated softer underlying momentum.

Cautious sentiment also prevailed ahead of March-quarter earnings beginning later this week. Research firms Nomura and Jefferies forecast a weak quarter for Indian auto and oil and gas companies, citing weak volume growth and refining/petchem margins.

Tata Motors, Cipla, Wipro, Adani Ports, and HUL were top gainers on Nifty, while Bharti Airtel, Hindalco, Asian Paints, TCS, and UPL fell the most.

Among sectors, banking and financial indices fell the most, down over 1 percent, followed by Nifty Metal and Nifty IT. Nifty Auto and Nifty realty gained during the day.

Nifty Bank slipped over 1 percent with over 9 stocks in the index ending in the red. HDFC Bank, Bank of Baroda, SBI, IndusInd Bank and PNB fell between 1-2.5 percent.

Aluminium producer Hindalco fell to its lowest in over a month after reporting a spillage at its Jharkhand plant. The stock ended 2.5 percent lower.

Globally, Asian shares slipped from eight-month highs on Wednesday as the International Monetary Fund lowered its global growth outlook and as tensions over tariffs between the United States and Europe escalated. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.3 percent, a day after it hit its highest since August 1. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.55 percent and Japan’s Nikkei lost 0.7 percent.