Indian shares ended lower on Wednesday, tracking broader Asia after the launch of a formal impeachment inquiry against US President Donald Trump, increasing the prospects of prolonged political uncertainty.
Democrats in the US House of Representatives on Tuesday launched a formal impeachment inquiry into President Trump, accusing him of seeking foreign help to smear Democratic rival Joe Biden ahead of next year’s election.
The Sensex ended 504 points lower at 38,593, while the broader Nifty50 index lost 148 points to end the day at 11,440. In broader markets, the Nifty Midcap and the Nifty Smallcap indices fell around 2 percent each.
PowerGrid, TCS, NTPC, IOC and HCL Tech were the top gainers on the Nifty50, while SBI, Tata Motors, Yes Bank, Eicher Motors and Maruti led the losses.
All sectoral indices, except the Nifty IT, ended in red for the day. The Nifty PSU Bank index fell the most, down 5.6 percent each followed by the Nifty Auto, down 3.9 percent. Meanwhile, the Nifty Bank, the Nifty Fin Services and the Nifty Media slipped 2 percent each. The Nifty Metal also slipped 2.6 percent, while the Nifty Realty slumped 3 percent for the day.
SBI fell 7.7 percent after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to 'equal-weight' from 'overweight' with a target of Rs 330 per share.
Auto stocks were also under pressure with Ashok Leyland, Tata Motors, Maruti, Eicher Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) down between 4-6 percent.
Meanwhile, PowerGrid rose 4 percent, in an otherwise weak market, on reports of the sale of transmission lines worth Rs 20,000 crore over the next 6 months.