Indian shares closed weaker for a ninth straight session on Monday, dragged by financial and pharmaceutical stocks, as concerns over the country’s non-banking finance sector (NBFC) coupled with global slowdown worries whacked investor sentiment.
NBFC sector is facing issues of credit squeeze, over-leveraging and misadventures by some large entities, Corporate Affairs Secretary Injeti Srinivas told the Press Trust of India on Sunday.
“Initially, investors bought shares at a low valuation expecting a recovery, but it didn’t (recover) and that is why we saw a heavy sell-off at the end,” said AK Prabhakar, head of research, IDBI Capital in Mumbai.
The benchmark BSE Sensex ended down 0.99% at 37,090.82. The broader NSE Nifty closed 1.16% lower at 11,148.2.
The NSE records its longest losing streak since May 2011, while the BSE index matched its worst run in about two months.
Nifty’s state-run bank index closed 5% lower with Union Bank of India Ltd ending 9.76% weaker.
U.S. states filed a lawsuit accusing Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc of orchestrating a sweeping scheme with 19 other drug companies to inflate drug prices, state prosecutors said on Saturday.
The pharma index closed 4.37% weaker, with Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd marking its worst session in nearly two years.
Index heavyweight ITC Ltd closed 2.84% after posting its March-quarter results.
