Markets open week in red: Sensex down over 400 points to 59,226; Nifty at 17,617

Equity benchmarks fell in early trade on Monday with the Sensex declining nearly 420 points amid mixed global market trends.

The 30-share BSE benchmark, which had started the trade on a weak note, further fell 419.69 points to 59,226.46. The broader NSE Nifty declined 140.6 points to 17,617.85. From the Sensex pack, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Tata Steel, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, HCL Technologies and IndusInd Bank were the major laggards.

On the other hand, Hindustan Unilever, Reliance Industries, Power Grid and ITC were trading higher. In Asia, markets in Seoul and Tokyo were trading lower, while Shanghai and Hong Kong quoted in the green in mid-session deals.

The Wall Street had ended lower on Friday.

The BSE benchmark had ended 651.85 points or 1.08 per cent lower at 59,646.15 on Friday. The Nifty fell 198.05 points or 1.10 per cent to settle at 17,758.45. Meanwhile, the international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.01 per cent lower at USD 95.74 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned net buyers as they bought shares worth ₹1,110.90 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

“A weak opening for domestic equity market indices is on the cards on Monday, after the US markets continued their descent on Friday while other Asian peers too are displaying a sluggish to negative trend in today’s early trade,” Prashanth Tapse – Research Analyst, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd had said in his pre-market opening comment.