Stock markets decline in early trade dragged down by Bajaj Finance, foreign fund outflows

New Delhi: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade on Tuesday dragged down by Bajaj Finance and fresh foreign fund outflows.

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The 30-share BSE Sensex depreciated by 259.36 points, or 0.31 percent, to 83,275.99 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 72.90 points, or 0.29 percent, to 25,501.45.

Among the Sensex firms, Bajaj Finance tanked by 7 percent as investors turned cautious after the company's lower Assets Under Management (AUM) growth guidance and rising signs of asset stress. Bajaj Finserv fell by 6.5 percent.

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Tata Steel, PowerGrid, Asian Paints, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, NTPC, Tech Mahindra and Kotak Mahindra Bank were also among the laggards.

Bharat Electronics Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, HCL Technologies, Axis Bank, Adani Ports, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Hindustan Unilever and Eternal were the gainers.

Broader Asian equities were trading on a mixed note. South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 index were trading higher while Shanghai SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng were quoting in the red territory.

The US markets ended higher in overnight deals on Monday.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the US will soon reduce the tariffs imposed on India, as the two nations moved closer to finalising a trade deal.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined by 0.19 percent to USD 63.94 per barrel.

On Monday, the 30-share BSE Sensex benchmark climbed 319.07 points to close at 83,535.35. The 50-share NSE Nifty advanced 82.05 points to settle at 25,574.35.