Mumbai: India's stocks fell, ending a five- day rally, after the central bank governor said faster inflation is a "big worry." Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and Reliance Industries Ltd declined following rating downgrades.
State Bank of India declined for a second day. The nation needs to calibrate the withdrawal of fiscal and monetary stimulus because private consumption and investment haven't fully recovered, central bank Governor Duvvuri Subbarao said. Carmaker Maruti slid to an eight-month low after Morgan Stanley lowered it to "equal-weight," citing higher commodity prices and competitive pressures.
"More action by the Reserve Bank of India before the next scheduled policy meeting cannot be ruled out," said P. Phani Sekhar, who manages funds for wealthy individuals at Angel Broking Ltd. in Mumbai. "Rising commodity prices may hurt the profitability of some companies." The brokerage is ranked by Dun & Bradstreet as having India's biggest distribution network.
The Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensitive Index, or Sensex, dropped 54.66, or 0.3 per cent, to 17,690.62, ending its longest winning streak since September. The gauge swung between gains and losses at least 12 times. The S&P CNX Nifty Index on the National Stock Exchange lost 0.3 percent to 5,308.35. The BSE 200 Index fell 0.2 per cent to 2,237.27.
State Bank, the nation's biggest lender, fell 1.5 per cent to Rs2,217.8. ICICI Bank Ltd, the country's second-biggest lender, lost 1.4 per cent to Rs946.95.
