Sensex falls 204 pts to 5-week low on growth worries

MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex on Tuesday fell 204 points to a five-week low of 18,109.89 on selling of real estate, banking and IT stocks by funds, jittery over a slowing domestic growth amid nagging concerns over a bumpy US economic recovery. 


Sensex, which had gained 117 points yesterday, tumbled 204.44 points to 18,109.89, its lowest since June 23, after the Prime Minister's economic advisory council lowered the country's economic growth forecast to 8.2 per cent this fiscal from earlier estimate of 9 per cent. 


Investors sought to book profits to avail of Monday's rally, which along with a weak Asia trend and lower opening in Europe after the US posted weak factory output pulled down the Bombay Stock Exchange's 30-share Sensex. 


However, Sensex leader Reliance Industries that perked up by 0.51 per cent, partly capped the losses. 


IT exporters bore the brunt of the uncertainty over the US economic recovery as they get more than 50 per cent of their revenue from exports to the US and Europe. 


IT index tumbled 1.50 per cent as Infosys --industry bellwether and Sensex's second most weighted scrip-- tumbled 2 per cent while larger rival TCS slipped 0.26 per cent. Wipro, the third-biggest Indian software company, slid 2.37 per cent. 


Realty sector index slid the most at 2.09 per cent, followed by metal index that fell 1.83 per cent, and banking index at 1.71 per cent. 


Broad-based National Stock Exchange's 50-scrip index Nifty fell 60.25 points to below 5,500 points level at 5,456.55 on decline in IT, banking and interest rate- sensitive sectors stocks.