Markets end lower on oil, inflation worries

Mumbai: Stock market set the clock back on Tuesday as the Sensex tumbled 228 points - in a break with three sessions of gains - after investor worry heightened over rising global oil prices ahead of inflation numbers.

Participants were at a crossroads as they had a clutch of macro pointers such as industrial production (IIP) and inflation in their sights. These macro-pointers which were released after market hours disappointed. Other Asian shares also turned weak.

The Sensex closed at 33,227.99, down 227.80 points, or 0.68 per cent. The gauge had rallied 858.61 points in the previous three sessions. The broader Nifty settled below the key 10,300-level, down 82.10 points, or 0.80 per cent, at 10,240.15.

Realty, power and banking were in the grip of selling. Global Brent crude oil prices jumped above the $65 a barrel for the first time since 2015, which could spoil any chance of rate reduction by the Reserve Bank, traders said.

Losses in oil marketers such as HPCL, BPCL and IOC stocks too weighed. Back home, in the Sensex pack, Coal India tanked the most, losing 2.45 per cent, followed by Cipla, down 2.17 per cent, after participants took profit off the table. Other major losers were Hero MotoCorp, TCS, Tata Steel, ITC and L&T.