Mumbai, May 19: Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Tuesday due to a fag-end sell-off in blue-chip stocks HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries, as concerns rose over the rupee hitting a new record low.
Elevated global crude prices tracking geopolitical uncertainties also impacted market sentiment, but robust buying in IT stocks restricted the fall in indices, traders said.
After remaining in the positive territory for the most part of the session, the BSE Sensex suddenly came under selling pressure towards the end, declining 114.19 points, or 0.15 per cent, to settle at 75,200.85.
During the day, it surged 431.23 points, or 0.57 per cent, to 75,746.27 after US President Donald Trump said he had halted fresh strikes on Iran at the request of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, asserting that serious discussions were underway with Tehran that could lead to an acceptable deal.
The 50-share NSE Nifty dipped 31.95 points, or 0.14 per cent, to end at 23,618. (PTI)
