Sensex slides 261 points in early trade

Mumbai: The benchmark BSE Sensex tumbled over 261 points in early trade on Tuesday as participants locked in gains after two sessions of gains and ahead of IIP and inflation data to be released later in the day. 

The 30-share index was trading lower by 261.62 points, or 0.95 per cent, at 27,245.68, with all the sectoral indices led by banking, realty and auto trading in the negative zone, with losses up to 1.80 per cent. 

The gauge had rallied 908.19 points in the previous two sessions on the back of government’s move to assuage overseas investors’ taxation concerns and hopes of an RBI rate cut. 

Similarly, the Nifty slipped below the 8,300-mark by plunging 104.50 points, or 1.26%, to 8,220.75. 

Brokers said emergence of profit-booking by participants ahead of key economic data — industrial production (IIP) numbers for March and inflation based on consumer price index (CPI) for April — to be unveiled later in the day contributed to the fall. 

Besides, a weak trend at other Asian markets, weighed down by uncertainty over the Greek debt deal, too, dampened trading sentiment here, they said. 

Among other Asian markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 0.19% while Japan’s Nikkei shed 0.62% in early trade today. 

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.47% lower in Monday’s trade.