Sensex fall 460 pts, Nifty below 22,700 amid elevated oil prices

The domestic share market traded lower for the third straight session on Thursday weighed down by rising oil prices and inflation concerns.At close, the Sensex was down 460.30 points or 0.62 percent at 73,249.39, and the Nifty was down 123.70 points or 0.54 percent at 22,687.65.
Bajaj Finance, Cipla, SBI, Bajaj Auto and ICICI Bank were the top gainers on the Nifty, while losers included Nestle India, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, HDFC Life, Tech Mahindra, Reliance Industries, according to agency reports.On the sectoral front,all the sectoral indices ended in the red with Auto, Consumer Durable, Oil & Gas, Information Technology, Energy and FMCG down 0.5-1.7 percent, while Media index shed 2.3 percent.The broader markets continued to underperform the benchmark indices, with the Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices declining around 1 percent each.
Rupee Close:
The Indian rupee slumped 44 paise to close at 94.82 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Thursday , weighed down by a negative trend in the domestic equity markets and surging crude oil prices.According to forex analysts, the rupee began trading on a flat-to-lower trajectory due to sluggish domestic equities and surging crude oil prices.Escalation of attacks by Yemeni Houthis on Saudi Arabia’s energy infrastructure deteriorated global market sentiment, they said, adding that softening of the dollar index and a decline in U.S. Treasury yields cushioned the downside.
Trading Guide:
Market experts recommended Persistent Systems, Sagility, and Waaree Energies,as the  top stocks to buy on Thursday.

(Business Correspondent)