Sensex, Nifty Extend Declines For Third Day

(RTTNews) - Indian shares fell sharply on Tuesday, extending losses for a third straight session due to heightened geopolitical and trade tensions.

After the U.S. rejected India's WTO notice on retaliatory tariffs against steep metal duties, India is considering suspending concessions on American imports, media reports said.

Rising oil prices remained a concern after a second round of direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have ended without a major breakthrough and reports suggested that Iran is set to reject a U.S. nuclear deal proposal that would be key to easing sanctions on the major oil producer.

Continued foreign portfolio investor (FPI) outflows in recent session, largely due to global trade uncertainties and a rebound in the dollar index also weighed on investor sentiment.

The benchmark 30-share BSE Sensex fell 636.24 points, or 0.78 percent, to 80,737.51 while the broader NSE Nifty index closed at 24,542.50, down 174.10 points, or 0.70 percent, from its previous close.

The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indexes ended down half a percent and 0.1 percent, respectively.

The market breadth was weak on the BSE, with 2,256 shares declining while 1,737 shares advanced and 151 shares closed unchanged.

Adani Group stocks came under selling pressure following a Wall Street Journal report that U.S. authorities are investigating whether the group imported Iranian LPG via its Mundra port.

Adani Enterprises fell 1.8 percent and Adani Ports declined 2.4 percent despite the Group denying the report as baseless.

Among other prominent decliners, IndusInd Bank, Eternal, Power Grid Corp, Bajaj Finance and Bajaj FinServ all lost around 2 percent.