Trump threats take down D-St

Sensex, Nifty decline in early trade dragged by IT firms in response to POTUS comments on India's Russian oil purchases

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Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower Monday, dragged by blue-chip HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries and IT stocks amid fresh warning from the US to further raise tariffs against India.

The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 322.39 points or 0.38 per cent to settle at 85,439.62. During the day, it tanked 446.68 points or 0.52 per cent to 85,315.33.

A total of 2,545 stocks declined, while 1,723 advanced and 203 remained unchanged on the BSE.

After hitting a record intra-day high of 26,373.20, the 50-share NSE Nifty failed to carry forward the momentum and declined 78.25 points or 0.30 per cent to end at 26,250.30.

"Market sentiment remained guarded, with participants staying largely on the sidelines amid escalating geopolitical tensions following the US attack on Venezuela over the weekend," according to Ashika Institutional Equities.