MARKET UPDATE FOR 26 SEPTEMBER
The key benchmark indices ended sharply lower as uncertainty
overthe fate of the US government's $700 billion rescue plan for
thefinancial sector hurt investor sentiment. As per provisionalclosing,
the BSE 30-share Sensex was down 485.64. News of thebiggest ever
US bank failure compounded the bearish sentiments,with the
US government brokering a last-ditch purchase of thriftWashington
Mutual by JPMorgan. All the sectoral indices on BSE, barring the
FMCG index, ended inred. Mid-cap and small-cap stocks, too, witnessed
major sellingpressure. India's largest drug maker by sales Ranbaxy
Laboratoriesslumped. Weak US economic data also weighed on
market sentiments. Datareleased overnight showed US-made durable
goods fell 4.5% in August2008, while sales of new homes in the US
dropped 11.5% during themonth. First-time jobless claims in the US
rose to their highestcount in seven years pointing to a slow down.