Sensex, Nifty crash post budget announcements

Mumbai: The market euphoria evaporated after the NDA government presented its maiden Railway and Union Budget this week as investors felt there was lack of big-bang initiatives, sending Sensex and Nifty down over 3.5 per cent.

The week saw the Sensex crossing 26,000-mark and Nifty registering 7,800 during intra-day trade for the first time in the history, but there was also this post-budget slide not seen since July 2009. Extreme caution resulted intense profit-booking as investors rued of budgets lack of far-reaching reforms and absence of subsidies and above all of concerns over GAAR (General Anti-Avoidance Rules). Renewed Eurozone debt concerns on reports of Portugal's biggest listed bank, Banco Espirito Santo, missing debt payments also added the disappointment.

Barring FMCG and IT counters, profit-booking was witnessed in Power, Capital-Goods, Realty, PSUs, Consumer Durables, Metals, Auto and Banking sectors. Broader markets including shares of mid-cap and small-cap companies also saw intense selling. The Sensex opened sharply higher at 26,039.67 and surged to an all-time high of 26,190.44 but fell back to a low of 24,978.33 before ending at 25,024.35, showing a fall of 937.71 points or 3.61 per cent. The NSE 50-share Nifty also climbed to an all-time high of 7,808.85 before finishing the week at 7,459.60, showing a dip of 292.00 points or 3.77 per cent. Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 2362.42 crore during the week, including provisional data of July 11.