(Representative image)

NEW DELHI: Equity indices plunged on Tuesday with benchmark BSE sensex slipping nearly 650 points amid concerns over soaring crude prices following drone attacks on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities. Sensex cracked 642 points or 1.73 per cent to close at 36,481; while the broader NSE Nifty moved 186 points or 1.69 per cent lower to settle at 10,818.

Surging crude oil prices have emerged as major fears for India -- the world's third largest oil importer -- in form of fiscal slippage and inflationary pressure. India currently imports around 83 per cent of its crude oil needs.

The drone attacks targeted Abqaiq, the site of the largest oil processing plant run by the Saudi state oil company, Aramco, and the Khurais oilfields.

Major laggards on the 30-share BSE index include Hero MotorCorp, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, Maruti, and SBI with their stocks falling as much as 6.24 per cent. 27 out of 30 stocks on the sensex pack finished in red. On NSE, all sub-indices witnessed losses with Nifty PSU Bank and Realty sliding as much as 3.73 per cent.

Experts said that investor sentiment remained weak amid geopolitical uncertainties over the Saudi oil turmoil, US-China trade war and looming global economic slowdown.

Market is now awaiting cues from the upcoming trade talks between China and the US as well as a much-anticipated policy meeting of the US Federal Reserve, they added.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net of Rs 751.26 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 308.56 crore, provisional data showed on Monday.

(With PTI inputs)

