Mumbai, Feb 27: In a four-day losing streak, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark index Sensex on Monday tumbled 478 points on fears that surging crude oil prices might push up inflation and a weak global trend.
The Sensex, which had lost over 500 points in the last three trading sessions, fell further by 477.82 points, or 2.67 per cent to 17,445.75 after touching a low of 17,381.64.
Similarly, the NSE 50-scrip index Nifty dropped 148.10 points, or 2.73 per cent to 5,281.20 as most of the front-runner stocks fell.
A weak trend in the Asian region and lower openings in Europe, as oil touched a neat 10-month high of over $125 a barrel amid uncertainties over supplies from Iran, fuelled selling.
Marketmen said profit booking emerged mainly in realty and banking stocks on concerns that high global oil prices would fan inflation as India imports over 80 per cent of its oil consumption requirements.
Interest-rate sensitive banking and realty stocks led the declines on investor worries that price pressures could make it difficult for the Reserve Bank to lower key lending rates.
Automakers and steel producers also fell as investors took profits.
RIL and Infosys — with 20 per cent weigh on BSE 30-scrip Sensex — dropped 4.77 per cent and by 2.32 per cent.
Other major losers were — Tata Steel, down 7.03 per cent, Hero MotorCorp 6.62 pc, Hindalco 5.35 pc, DLF Ltd 5 pc, BHEL 4.88 pc, ICICI Bank 4.80 pc and Jindal Steel 4.93 pc.
