Sensex sheds 81 points on rate hike fears

The share prices slid 0.58 per cent in choppy trade on Wednesday on concerns that further monetary tightening could slow growth after the RBI moved to cut liquidity late on Tuesday.

Block deals on the BSE

The 30-share BSE Sensex index fell 2.02 per cent in early trade to a day's low of 13,805.36 before recovering to close at 14,009.90, down 81.08 points. But the S&P CNX Nifty finished 02.55 points higher at 4047.10. The markets have now shed 4.38 per cent in four straight days, from a record close of 14,652.09 on February 8.

Banking, construction and infrastructure stocks were hardest hit in a market, which has tested successive record highs over the past few months.

"The markets reacted to the monetary tightening but appear to be bottoming out at these levels. We could see a surge closer to the union budget," said an analyst.