Sensex slips for third consecutive day; auto, FMCG tumble

It was the third bad day for the Nifty. It broke another important level of 4400 in the last half an hour of the trade but managed to close above that level. The markets plunged owing to monsoon worries; auto and FMCG stocks were badly hit.

Selling was also seen in capital goods, banking, cement, power, realty, telecom and oil marketing companies' shares. However, technology stocks along with ONGC, Cipla and Tata Power were supportive to the markets throughout the session.

The equity benchmarks started on a higher note following positive Asian cues but immediately turned volatile in the first 15 minutes. In the last half an hour of the trade, both the indices saw huge selling pressure, wherein the Sensex touched an intraday low of 14,902.02 and the Nifty tested 4399.85.

The former Index shut shop at 15,009.77, down 150.47 points or 0.99% and the later one fell 0.98% or 43.75 points, to settle at 4437.65. Both the indices fell around 5.5% in three sessions, on closing basis. The broader indices underperformed the benchmark indices, slipped 1.7-2%.

The rainfall in the country was below the normal level. The Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE) scaled down India's FY10 gross domestic growth (GDP) forecast to 5.8% against its earlier estimate of 6.6%, Mahesh Vyas, the monitory body's MD and CEO, said. The agricultural crop production was likely to fall to 4.7% due the dismal monsoons, he told CNBC-TV18 in an exclusive interview. A positive was that industrial growth would be robust ahead and that he expected a rise in employment, he said.

Dr Ajit Tyagi of the MET Department, in an exclusive interview to CNBC-TV18 said overall, the country's rainfall could be near 87% of the long-term average - a scaledown from the MET's earlier prediction of 93% - and that he sees a 13-15% deficiency in rains.