Early gains erased, Sensex down 184 pts to below 18k

Mumbai, Feb 8 (PTI) The BSE benchmark Sensex was down 184points and trading below the crucial 18,000-mark at 1145 hourstoday as investors offloaded interest-sensitive stocks amidfears of a further hike in short-term rates by the RBI to curbrising inflation.

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex, which hadgained 104 points in opening trade, subsequently went into atailspin, losing 183.99 points to below the 18,000-mark at17,853.20 at 1145 hours. The decline was led by realty,consumer durable, metal and banking stocks.

Similarly, the broad-based National Stock Exchange Niftyindex fell below 5,400 points level by losing 51.20 points to5,344.80 at 1145 hours.

Brokers said the selling was mostly in interestrate-sensitive sectors, as investors fear the Reserve Bank ofIndia may resort to more monetary tightening to rein ininflation.

They said a mixed trend in other Asian peers furtherinfluenced the market sentiment. In the Asian region, the keybenchmark indices in South Korea, Indonesia and Japan rose,while the Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore exchanges fell. PTIRS SUN KPS ARV