Sensex extends losses after IAF attack in PoK, Nifty nears 10,740

After opening lower, the stock markets - Sensex and Nifty - extended losses on Tuesday, following escalating tension between India and Pakistan. Domestic investor sentiment took a beating after the Pakistan Army on Tuesday alleged that the Indian Air Force violated the Line of Control (LoC) in Muzafarabad sector. India later confirmed the attack.

Tension has been high between India and Pakistan after the February 14 suicide attack by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad terror group that killed 40 CRPF soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district.

Sensex plunged nearly 500 points in opening deals and Nifty slipped below the 10,740 level. Most of the BSE sectoral indices were trading in the red, led by banking, power, PSU, realty and IT stocks.

Lagging stocks like Yes Bank, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Steel, Vedanta, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank, SBI, RIL, M&M, Kotak Bank, Bajaj Finance, Infosys, NTPC, HDFC, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Auto, IndusInd Bank, L&T, PowerGrid, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, Asian Paint, ITC and ONGC, fell up to 2.38 per cent, dragging down key indices. All sectoral indices were in the red, with realty, utilities, and metal falling up to 3 percent.

The brokers noted a fresh round of selling by domestic institutional investors (DIIs) that dampened market sentiment even more. Asian markets also showed a bearish trend.

As per Reuters reports, although the pound advanced on hopes UK Prime Minister Theresa May will delay a Brexit deadline, Asian shares ran out of optimism on Tuesday after reaching a five-month high as investors waited to see if the US and China could secure a trade deal. Mainland Chinese stocks slipped in early trade after scoring major gains yesterday.

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