BENGALURU, June 17 (Reuters) - Indian shares ended lower on
Friday to post their biggest weekly decline in more than two
years, drubbed by worries that rapid increases in interest rates
to tame stubborn inflation could derail economic growth.
The NSE Nifty 50 index fell 0.44% to 15,293.5, while
the S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.26% to 51,360.42. Both the
indexes touched more than one-year lows in their sixth straight
session of losses.
The blue-chip indexes logged losses of around 5.5% each for
a week that saw the U.S. Federal Reserve hike interest rates by
75 basis points and the Swiss National Bank deliver its first
rate hike in 15 years.
Analysts have said selling by foreign investors and fears of
damage to economic recovery from aggressive monetary policy
tightening were causing jitters in the market.
Foreign investors have withdrawn a net $3.64 billion from
Indian equities this month after selling a net $5.18 billion in
May.
"The rising cost of capital will impact valuation multiples
and have an adverse impact on economic growth and corporate
earnings," said Gaurav Dua, head of capital market strategy at
Sharekhan.
The Nifty IT index and the Nifty Pharma index
, which track some companies that are exposed to the
U.S. market, were among the worst performing sub-indexes on
Friday, falling 1.5% and 2.2%, respectively. The Nifty IT index
posted a weekly drop of around 8%.
Shares of India's largest company, Reliance Industries
, ended 1.2% higher after business channel ET Now
reported that the company was considering buying out bankrupt
cosmetics giant Revlon Inc in the United States.
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Titan Company was the biggest percentage loser on
the Nifty, slumping 6% in its worst day in more than two years.
Shares of sugar manufacturers fell between 1% and 6% after
Reuters reported India was likely to impose a ceiling on sugar
exports from October to ensure ample domestic supplies and keep
a lid on local prices.
(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya
Soni)