Stock markets fall for fourth day on profit taking; Sensex down 667 points

Sensex and Nifty drop nearly 1% amid profit-taking ahead of Lok Sabha poll results, global cues weak.

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty declined nearly 1% on June 29, falling for the fourth day running amid profit-taking by cautious investors ahead of the results of the Lok Sabha polls.

The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 667.55 points or 0.89% to settle at 74,502.90. It went below the 75,000 mark to hit the day's low of 74,454.55, plunging 715.9 points or 0.95%. The BSE benchmark hit its all-time peak of 76,009.68 on May 27.

The NSE Nifty dropped 183.45 points or 0.80% to 22,704.70. The 50-share barometer hit its lifetime high of 23,110.80 on May 27. From the Sensex pack, Tech Mahindra, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finserv, HDFC Bank, UltraTech Cement, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries and Infosys were the biggest laggards. Power Grid, Sun Pharma, Nestle, ITC and Bharti Airtel were the gainers.

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"Weak global cues prompted investors to take profits ahead of the U.S. core PCE data, a key gauge of inflation that is anticipated to rise," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services said.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong settled lower while Shanghai ended with gains. European markets were trading lower. The U.S. markets ended on a mixed note on May 28.

The last phase of polling is scheduled for June 1. The results of the ongoing general elections will be declared on June 4. Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.88% to $84.94 a barrel. “Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹65.57 crore on Tuesday,” according to exchange data.