Sensex opens low at 19,110.40 pts, down nearly by 180 pts

Mumbai, Nov 8: The BSE sensitive index today resumed negative at 19,110.40 points losing 179 points from its last close of 19,289.83 points on sustained selling pressure by FIIs and some local operates in view of weak global equities.

Dealers said, '' Market dwindled on opening, extending recent fall due to setback in global equities. Asian markets fell as investors sold financial shares on credit worries caused by the US subprime crisis.

Asian stock markets fell today, as investors dumped financial stocks amid growing fears of further fallout from the US credit market crisis, while the weak dollar weighed on the region's major exporters. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan were down by between 2.59 pc to 3.71 pc.

The sell-off in stocks started on Wall Street following news of a probe of the US home loan industry by New York's attorney general and after Washington Mutual, the top US savings and loans firm, warned the housing downturn would extend well into next year. The Dow Jones industrial average sank 360.92 points, or 2.64 pc on yesterday, to end at 13,300.02.

The Standard&Poor's 500 Index lost by 44.65 points, or 2.94 pc, to 1,475.62 -- the index's worst percentage drop since August nine 2007, when French bank BNP Paribas spooked global markets by freezing three funds due to subprime fears. The Nasdaq Composite Index slid 76.42 points to 2,748.76. General Motors added to the gloom by posting its biggest-ever quarterly loss due in part to a deeper-than-expected loss at former finance subsidiary GMAC.

Later, The 30-share BSE Sensex was down by 192.86 points or 1 per cent (pc) at 19,096.97. It touched a low of 18,973.42 in early trade. At day's low of 18,973.42, Sensex had lost 316.41 points from it last close.

The broader S&P CNX Nifty index of NSE was down by 70.5 points or 1.22 pc at 5711.85, before it resumed low at 5779.30 points from it last close of 5782.35 points.The Nifty index recorded a low at 5646.75 points in intra day trade.

The BSE Mid-Cap index was down 62.72 points or 0.79 pc at 7,923.24, while the BSE Small-Cap index was lower by 78.45 points or 0.81 pc at 9,616.68.

Among heavyweights, Reliance Industries fell by 0.68 pc to Rs 2744, Infosys Technologies dropped by 0.22 pc to Rs 1740 and ICICI Bank declined 1.40 pc to Rs 1185.State bank of India gave away 1.30 pc to Rs 2237.

Larsen&Toubro gained by 0.87 pc to Rs 4150.20, Mahindra&Mahindra rose by 0.42 pc to Rs 763 and Hindustan Unilever hiked by 0.26 pc to Rs 192.70, brokers added.

UNI