A mixture of negative cues and apprehensions, both domestic and global, sent the stock markets reeling on Thursday. The benchmark Sensex lost 1.56 per cent, or nearly 440 points, to close at 27,643, while the Nifty lost 135 points to finish the day’s trade at 8,573.35.

Indian markets opened Thursday morning to news of the US Federal Reserve inching closer to a decision on when to raise interest rates.

Domestically, the season of second-quarter earnings began on Thursday, but the markets did not seem to expect much by way of fireworks. Tata Consultancy Services, the first to announce the quarter’s results, saw its stock close nearly 2 per cent down, at ₹2,334, on the NSE.

The broader markets took a beating as well, with the BSE 100 and 200 indices both losing a percentage and a half, as did the benchmarks for mid- and small-cap firms. Foreign investors offloaded net equity of ₹911.53 crore, while domestic institutions took the opportunity to buy, picking up net equity of ₹679.49 crore. Retail investors on the BSE bought net equity of ₹132.66 crore.

Sector-wise, the Nifty metal index lost 2 per cent, responding to the negative sentiment globally on commodities. Realty and media indices on the NSE lost over 2 and 3 per cent, respectively. India Vix, the volatility index, rose 7.98 per cent to close at 15.4250.

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