INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
HDFC Bank, HDFC and ICICI Bank were the biggest drags on Sensex
Domestic stock markets
started Friday's session on a lacklustre note amid weakness in banking, financial services and energy shares, a day after benchmark indices
Sensex and Nifty halted a rally that stretched to eight days
The S-P BSE Sensex index dropped 285.79 points - or 0.66 per cent - to 43,071.40 at the weakest level recorded in morning deals, and the
broader NSE Nifty 50 benchmark slumped to as low as 12,613.95, down 76.85 points - or 0.61 per cent - from its previous close
0.46 per cent - at 12,633.00
(Track Sensex, Nifty Here)IndusInd Bank, HDFC, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank and Tata Motors, trading between 1.62 per cent and 2.08 per cent lower,
Industries, up 0.96-2.54 per cent each, were the top gainers in the index.HDFC Bank, HDFC and ICICI Bank were the biggest drags on Sensex,
together accounting for a drop of more than 150 points in the index.On Thursday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a third set
29.88 lakh crore, or roughly 15 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), the Finance Minister saidOn the previous day, the
government had announced production-linked incentives worth about Rs 2 lakh crore spread over five years for manufacturers in 10
sectors.Meanwhile, stock markets elsewhere in Asia moved lower on Friday, following on from selloffs in the US and Europe as investors
feared the economic impact of an accelerating rise in coronavirus infections
Japan's Nikkei 225 index was down 0.95 per cent.The US has reported fresh daily records for new COVID-19 case hospitalisations this week,
prompting cities and states, including Chicago, Detroit and California, to re-impose public health restrictions.European officials have also
warned against complacency and said measures to control infections must continue despite hopes that vaccines under development could help to
slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
