Equity indices erase early gains, Bharti Airtel drops 6 pc on stake sale

Equity indices erase early gains, Bharti Airtel drops 6 pc on stake sale

Equity benchmark indices wiped out early gains on Tuesday and closed in the red after a volatile trading session that saw metal stocks shining but IT scrips plunging.

At the closing bell, the BSE S-P Sensex was down by 63 points or 0.21 per cent at 30,609 while the Nifty50 edged lower by 10 points or 0.11 per cent at 9,029.

Sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were mixed with Nifty metal up by 2.6 per cent, auto by 1.5 per cent and realty by 1.2 per cent.

But Nifty IT dipped by 1.9 per cent and pharma by 1.2 per cent.

Among stocks, Bharti Airtel was the top loser after reports said its parent company will sell up to 2.75 per cent stake to raise about one billion dollars through a block deal to become a zero-debt firm.

It closed 5.9 per cent lower at Rs 557.95 per share.