Nifty Hits 6-Month Closing Low After RBI Status Quo On Rates | Read

Stock markets moved sharply lower on Friday, led by oil retailers a day after the government announced a cut in fuel prices. The Sensex closed 792 points lower at 34,376 while the NSE Nifty settled at 10,316, its lowest since April 4. At 2.7 per cent, the Nifty also registered its biggest percentage fall since November 11, 2016. Heavy selling in state-run oil marketing companies Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, which finished the day with losses between 16 per cent and 25 per cent, weighed on the benchmark indices. Friday's session also coincided with release of the Reserve Bank of India's fourth bi-monthly policy statement, in which the central bank kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent.