The sentiment in capital market turned negative with the Government decision not to hike fuel prices despite the fuel subsidy bill shooting through the roof.
The benchmark Sensex fell 64 points to 19,856 while Nifty fell 19 points to 5,874.
The decision to skip fuel price hike is expected to increase the Government’s fiscal deficit. The government partially reimburses them for the discounted sales.
Index heavyweight, Reliance Industries declined by three per cent to Rs 849. Another index heavyweight and cigarette maker ITC dropped in choppy trade. IT stocks edged lower while capital goods pivotal gained. A few pharma stocks rose on defensive buying, with Dr Reddy's Laboratories scaling record high. Most auto stocks declined. Telecom stocks were in demand.
Major gainers for the day were BHEL (8 per cent), Apollo Hosp (5 per cent), Zee Entertainment (5 per cent), Pipavav Defence (5 per cent), Hindalco Inds (4 per cent), HDIL (4 per cent), Sobha Dev (4 per cent), Reliance Comm (4 per cent), Sesa Goa (4 per cent) and Coromandel Intl (3 per cent).
Major loser include Financial Tech, MCX, Gitanjali Gems, JP Power, BPCL, HPCL, Shriram Trans, RIL and HDFC Bank .