Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled nearly 1 per cent on Thursday due to heavy selling in market heavyweights HDFC Bank, TCS and Reliance as investors turned nervous over earnings growth concerns amid unabated foreign capital outflows.
Besides, abysmally low Chinese inflation data, an indication of poor demand, and a sell-off in US bonds added to the pressure, traders said.
TCS is kick-starting the December quarter results calendar on Thursday.
Falling for the second straight day, the 30-share benchmark dropped 528.28 points or 0.68 per cent to sink below the 78,000 level at 77,620.21. During the day, it tanked 605.57 points or 0.77 per cent to 77,542.92.
The NSE Nifty slumped 162.45 points or 0.69 per cent to 23,526.50.
From the 30-share Sensex blue-chip pack, Tata Steel, Zomato, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Motors, Adani Ports, Tata Consultancy Services, HDFC Bank and NTPC were the major laggards.
Nestle, Hindustan Unilever, Mahindra & Mahindra, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Asian Paints and Bharti Airtel were among the gainers.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,362.18 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
"The Indian stock market mirrored the decline across its Asian peers, with cautious investor sentiment driven by a sell-off in US bonds. The US 10-year Treasury yield surged to its highest level since April 2024, signalling the expectation of fewer rate cuts by the Fed.
"Further, disappointing inflation data from China added pressure, indicating that recent stimulus measures have failed to rejuvenate one of the world's largest consumer markets," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.
In Asian markets, Seoul settled in positive territory, while Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong ended lower.
European markets were trading on a mixed note. US markets ended mostly in the green on Wednesday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.11 per cent to USD 76.05 a barrel.
The BSE benchmark declined 50.62 points or 0.06 per cent to settle at 78,148.49 on Wednesday. The Nifty skidded 18.95 points or 0.08 per cent to 23,688.95.
