Sensex down by 127.92 points

Mumbai, June 13: After plunging below the psychological barrier of 14,000 during intra-day, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex today settled at 14,003.03, registering a sharp decline of 127.92 points, amid intense selling pressure fuelled by concerns that liquidity might now have shifted to the primary market.

It had reached a high of 14,152.79 and a low of 13,968.38 during intra-day after opening firmer at 14,139.92 from its previous close of 14,130.95.

''The market was weak right from the opening bell and kept on declining as trading progressed. There was fresh selling at every small rise. The turnover was low, indicating that the action might have shifted to the primary markets. As per latest data from the stock exchanges, the initial public offering (IPO) of India's biggest realty firm DLF was subscribed 1.63 times by afternoon trade,'' market analysts observed adding that the market saw high volatility throughout the day, as it did in the past few sessions.

Among the broader markets, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty Index also shaved off 42.15 points to end at 4,113.05 from it's previous close of 4,155.20, after opening unchanged and reaching an intra-day high of 4,161.80 and a low of 4,102.95.

Analysts said the market breadth was weak on the BSE, as 1,433 shares declined while 1,119 advanced and 89 remained unchanged. The total turnover here amounted to Rs 3,530 crore and among the 30-scrip Sensex pack, 25 slipped while the rest gained.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in equities to the tune of Rs 335.30 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold nearly Rs 80.86 crore of equities on yesterday, traders disclosed.

Rupee eased against the dollar today, on buying from importers.

In early trade, the rupee was at 40.855/865 per US dollar, weaker than the previous close of 40.7475/7575.

The prominent laggards included State Bank of India (SBI), ICICI Bank, Reliance Communications, Hindustan Unilever, L&T, Tata Steel, Reliance Industries (RIL), TCS, Infosys and Wipro.

The main gainers were Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL) and Satyam Computers.

Most Asian and European indices edged lower today, mirroring the overnight fall in US markets, with export-related shares such as Toyota Motor Corp retreating on concerns over global growth, while Sumitomo Metal Mining and BHP Billiton lost ground on weaker metals prices. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.16 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slumped 0.28 per cent.

South Korea's Seoul Composite was down by 0.46 per cent, Singapore's Straits Times slipped by 0.29 per cent. However, China's Shanghai Composite rose by 2.56 per cent to 4,176.48 and Belgium's BEL-20 was up by 0.05 per cent to 4,551.09.

US stocks plunged yesterday, as investors grappled with a seemingly relentless rise in bond yields. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 129.95 points, or 0.97 per cent, to 13,295.01.

The blue chip index is now 381 points, or 2.8 per cent, below its all time closing high of 13,676.32, which it had reached on June 4, this year.

The broader stock indices also declined. The Standard&Poor's 500 index fell 16.12 points, or 1.07 per cent, to 1,493.00, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 22.38 points, or 0.87 per cent, to 2,549.77.

Crude oil was little changed in New York after fall in gasoline prices yesterday. US fuel stockpiles rose a sixth week as refiners increased output. Crude oil for July delivery was USD 65.29 a barrel, down 6 cents, in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange in Singapore, traders said.

UNI