Market update: Sensex closes 297 points lower on profit-booking

The benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) index Sensex on Wednesday slumped by nearly 300 points to close at 27,208.61 due to heavy profit-booking, chiefly in IT, oil & gas and power shares, ignoring government approving the ordinance route to implement insurance and coal reforms.

The 30-issue BSE brometer traded in the positive terrain in early trade but reversed the gains to plunge by 297.85 points (or 1.08 per cent) to 27,208.61, due to the emergence of selling pressure in the last hour of the day's trade.

Brokers also attributed the selling pressure rollover of positions, short as well as long, to the next series on the last day December contract in Futures and Options.

The gauge had lost 195.33 points on Tuesday.

On similar lines, the broader 50-share National Stock Exchange (NSE) index Nifty also fell sharply by 92.90 points (or 1.12 per cent) to end below the 8,200-mark at 8,174.10.

Meanwhile, NSE recorded highest turnover in equity derivatives on Wednesday. Index options traded value was a record Rs 453,561.76 crore, while F&O witnessed a record trade value of Rs 566,897.54 crore.

Outflow was seen from Pharma and IT stocks while weakness in rupee continued to weigh on banking stocks. Profit booking was seen on major banking stocks.

F&O expiry and profit booking dragged the markets in late hours, WealthRays Securities' CEO & Director Kiran Kumar Kavikondala said.

Barring realty, all the sectoral indices closed in the red on across-the-board selling.

Among the 30 Sensex sscrips, BHEL was the worst hit with a loss of 2.52 per cent. NTPC shares fell by 2.35 per cent, followed by losses in the stocks of Gail India (2.22 per cent), ONGC (2.16 per cent) and HDFC (2.07 per cent).

The selling pressure increased in the last-half an hour and pushed the NSE index below the 8200-mark.

"Surprisingly, markets ignored Cabinet's approval on executive order to implement coal and insurance reforms," said Jayant Manglik, President, Retail Distribution, Religare Securities.

The Cabinet on Wednesday approved promulgation of the ordinance on insurance Bill, re-promulgation of the coal ordinance and allowing up to 100 per cent FDI in medical devices in the pharmaceutical sector under automatic route.

Persistent foreign capital outflows also affected the market sentiment.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 444.93 crore on Tuesday, according to provisional data released by capital market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India.