Shares in fraud-hit Indian IT firm Satyam slump 70%

Mumbai: Shares in outsourcing company Satyam Computers slumped over 70 per cent in opening trade on Friday, as investor confidence on the company weakened, dealers said.

Satyam stock fell 71.2 per cent at the Mumbai stock exchange, a day after two US shareholder lawsuits were filed against the firm for accounting fraud.

The benchmark Sensex was down 101.49 points or 1.06 percent to 9,485.39 in early dealings on Friday.

Bosses at Satyam vowed on Thursday that the company would remain in operation despite being rocked by revelations of a billion-dollar accounting fraud.

The Satyam stock has now fallen over 90 per cent in the past four weeks.