The Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex on Tuesday tumbled, as investors were cautious before the Reserve Bank of India’s policy meeting. The central bank might cut the repo rate by 25 basis points on Wednesday. However, some analysts are wary that the RBI may maintain current rates till April, reported Mint.

The BSE Sensex closed 104 points lower at 28,335 while the Nifty50 plummeted 33 points to 8,768 on Tuesday. As many as 1,548 shares ended lower in the BSE Sensex while 1,341 closed on a positive note, reported NDTV. In the NSE bourses, 18 shares were trading in green, while 33 were red.

Stocks of automakers trading in the red and banking stocks also fared badly. Tata Motors Ltd and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd nosedived 2.4% and 1.7% respectively. Profit booking by investors – selling their shares to realise gains – brought down the market even further, according to Moneycontrol. Analysts had advised them to book profits at regular levels, speculating that markets would rise further in the coming days.

However, shares of ITC Ltd rose 1.1% to Rs 279.50 after reports emerged that the government sold 2% stake in ITC Limited to the Life Insurance Corporation for $993 million (approximately Rs 6,690.33 crore). Shares of railway coach maker Titagarh Wagons Ltd also surged 7% after bagging a Rs 100 crore contract with the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

On Monday, the BSE Sensex had closed 198.76 points up at 28,439.28 and the National Stock Exchange Nifty ended 60.10 points higher to cross the 8,800-point mark. This was the first time in four months that the country’s leading stock exchange crossed the 8,800 mark.