Markets down on profit taking, weak global cues

Mumbai: Closing in the red for the second straight session, benchmark Sensex on Monday declined 352 points due to profit-taking in IT, metal and consumer durable goods shares amid weak global trends. The 30-share BSE barometer closed at 72,790.13 points, down 352.67 points or 0.48 per cent over the previous close. As many as 26 index constituents declined while four advanced.

The broader Nifty of NSE dropped 90.65 points or 0.41 per cent to end the day at 22,122.05 points and 37 stocks in the index were in the red. Selling in index heavyweights, including Infosys, TCS, ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries, dragged the benchmark indices into the negative for the second straight session, analysts said.

Among the Sensex shares, Asian Paints fell the most by 3.9 per cent as analysts expressed concerns over rising competition in the domestic paints market following the entry of Aditya Birla group company Grasim Industries into the paints segment. IT shares Infosys, TCS, HCL Tech, Wipro and Tech Mahindra continued to slide amid inflation concerns in the US market.