Mumbai

Benchmark equity indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 ended nearly 2 per cent lower on Wednesday after a brief rebound, as crude oil prices surged amid escalating tensions in West Asia.

The 30-share Sensex fell 1,342.27 points or 1.72 per cent to close at 76,863.71. During the session, it had dropped 1,446.72 points or 1.84 per cent to 76,759.26.

The 50-share Nifty declined 394.75 points or 1.63 per cent to settle at 23,866.85.

Market sentiment remained weak due to persistent foreign fund outflows and heavy selling in blue-chip banking stocks.

Among the Sensex constituents, major laggards included Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Trent Limited, Bharti Airtel and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

On the other hand, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and NTPC Limited were among the gainers.

Global oil benchmark Brent Crude rose 5.76 per cent to USD 92.86 per barrel, adding pressure on investor sentiment.

According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹4,672.64 crore on Tuesday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth ₹6,333.26 crore.

In Asian markets, Nikkei 225 in Japan rose 1.43 per cent and South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.40 per cent. China’s SSE Composite Index also ended in the green, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed lower.

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European markets were trading in the red, while the US market had ended flat on Tuesday.