Stock markets big plunge, Sensex registers record 1,408-point fall

MUMBAI: The Stock market benchmark Sensex nosedived 1,408.35 points on Monday, its biggest single-day loss, as bourses across Asia as well as Europe went into a tailspin on fears of a possible recession in the US economy.
    
The downslide for the sixth straight day prompted government to caution investors against market rumours, while blaming global uncertainties for the fall.
    
"Orderly growth of the capital market is a priority of the government. I want to assure the citizens of India that sustained growth of the market is a priority," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in the evening. Fundamentals of the Indian economy remain strong, he said in New Delhi.
    
Investors have lost over 300 billion dollar (Rs 11,85,285 crore) in the last six days, with more than half of the loss coming from Monday's session. After falling below 17K level, the BSE 30-share index recovered partially to end the day at 17,605.35, a net fall of 7.41 per cent from Friday's close.
   
The NSE Nifty closed down 496.5 points or 8.7 per cent to end at 5,208.80. Sensex has fallen 13.97 per cent this month, with most of the losses coming in the last six sessions. FIIs have been net sellers to the tune of 2.2 billion dollars in the past four sessions alone.
    
Market players said investors also turned jittery after Reserve Bank governor Y V Reddy said in Mumbai that global financial markets have become far more uncertain than before and RBI will consider a possible recession in the world's biggest economy while reviewing its monetary policy next week.
    
The plunge shaved off more than Rs six trillion from investors' wealth. Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth almost Rs 3,300 crore today, according to provisional BSE data. Market players said Citigroup and Morgan Stanley, hit by mortgage-related losses in the US, were believed to be aggressive sellers during the day.