Equity indices fall by 0.5 pc, banking stocks worst hit

Feb 17, 2020

New Delhi, Feb 17 (ANI): Equity benchmark indices ended lower on Monday with investors trying to gauge the impact of Supreme Court verdict on telecom operators regarding the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues and the consequent result on banking sector. The apex court last week directed telcos to clear their dues totalling nearly Rs one lakh crore to the government by March 17, and threatened of contempt proceedings if they did not. The BSE S and P Sensex closed 202 points lower at 41,056 while the Nifty 50 slipped by 68 points to 12,046. Experts said that bank stocks will remain underpressure given high inflation and no possibility of an interest rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the near-term. Most sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were in the red with Nifty PSU bank down by 2.96 per cent.