MARKETS: Sensex drops 650pts, Nifty below 16,900 ahead of RBI Guv’s address

The broader markets also turned negative. The BSE MidCap index shed 1.3 per cent, while the SmallCap index was down 0.9 per cent.

Among the Sensex 30 stocks, the Bajaj twins (Bajaj Finserv and Bajaj Finance), Reliance Industries, Titan, Hindustan Unilever, HDFC Bank, Sun Pharma, Dr.Reddy’s and Bharti Airtel were the major losers. PowerGrid and NTPC, however, held gains.

Sectorally, the BSE Consumer Durables index plunged 2.7 per cent, and the Healthcare index too was down over 2 per cent. The . metals, power, realty, auto, Bankex and Capital Goods indices were also down over a per cent.