Sensex and Nifty close 1% lower as Union Budget fails to cheer investors
The shares of cigarette manufacturers declined as the Centre announced its plan to impose a nominal excise duty on tobacco products.
Indian stock markets fell sharply on Friday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the first Union Budget of the Narendra Modi-led government’s second tenure. The BSE Sensex closed 394.67 points (0.99%) down at 39,513.39. The National Stock Exchange Nifty declined by 135.60 points, or 1.14%, to finish at 11,811.15.
The Sensex and broader Nifty 50 index opened higher with Sensex reclaiming the 40,000 mark and the Nifty inching close to 12,000 ahead of the Union Budget presentation. However, the indices declined as the Budget speech began.
Only six stocks – IndusInd Bank, Kotak Mahindra, State Bank of India, ITC, Bharti Airtel and ICICI Bank – gained on the Sensex. Stocks of Yes Bank, National Thermal Power Corporation, Mahindra and Mahindra, Vedanta and Sun Pharmaceuticals fell the most.
Indiabulls Housing Finance, IndusInd Bank, Kotak Mahindra, SBI and ITC were the top gainers on the Nifty, while the stocks of Yes Bank, NTPC, UPL, Mahindra & Mahindra and Vendanta declined the most. The shares of cigarette manufacturers declined, led by the fall in VST Industries, as the Centre announced its plan to impose a nominal excise duty on tobacco products.
The Indian rupee closed eight paise up at 68.42 against the United States dollar.