Sensex nosedives 448 points, Nifty under 10K-mark amid global sell-off

New Delhi: The BSE Sensex dropped 448 points on Friday due to across the board sell-off led by realty, bank, financials and capital goods stocks after renewed threat of North Korea conducting another hydrogen bomb test.

North Korea said today it might test a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific Ocean after US President Donald Trump vowed to destroy the reclusive country, with leader Kim Jong Un promising to make a “mentally deranged” Trump pay dearly for his threats.

Meanwhile, the rupee hit near six-month low against the dollar in day trade which dampened the sentiment further. The rupee fell to 65.15 per dollar (intra-day), its weakest level since April 5, on speculation of widening fiscal deficit amid sustained foreign fund outflows.

The Sensex resumed lower 32,339.50 and hovered in a range of 32,342.81 and 31,919.47 before closing at 31,92.44, down by 447.60 points, or 1.38 percent.

The broader Nifty also succumbed to selling pressure and cracked below the 10,000-mark to hit a low of 9,952.80 before ending at 9,964.40, down 157.50 points, or 1.56 percent.

On a weekly basis, the BSE Sensex dropped by 350.17 points, or 1.08 percent, its biggest fall since August 11. The Nifty too ended lower by 121 points, or 1.19 percent.

Major losers were, Tata Steel 4.72 percent, L&T 3.45 percent, ICICI Bank 2.89 percent, SBI 2.53 percent, HeroMotoco 2.48 percent and Reliance Industries 2.32 percent.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 1,204.95 crore yesterday, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. While, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 1,416.55 crore, as per provisional data.

In Asia, Tokyo stocks snapped a four-day winning streak today as investors cashed in on recent gains amid resurging worries over North Korea. The Nikkei 225 index lost 0.25 percent, or 51.03 points, to close at 20,296.45, while the broader Topix index also ended down 0.25 percent, or 4.13 points, at 1,664.61.

The US stocks declined yesterday as profit booking emerged after recent winning streak.