Mumbai: India’s equity indices closed lower on Thursday following a hawkish stance by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor on monetary policy.

At closing, Sensex fell 581 points, or 0.73 percent, to 78,886 and Nifty slipped 180 points, or 0.74 percent, to 24,117.

The Central Bank kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.5 percent, with a growth rate outlook for the current financial year at 7.2 percent. On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), 1,768 shares were in the green mark, 2,137 shares were in the red mark, and 105 shares closed without any change. Midcap and smallcap indices also saw a decline.

Fin service, pharma, media, and private banks were the major gainers. In the Sensex pack, Tata Motors, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, ITC, IndusInd Bank, and Axis Bank were the top gainers. Asian Paints, Infosys, JSW Steel, UltraTech Cement, Power Grid, L&T, and HCL Tech were the top losers. Sujan Hajra, Chief Economist and Executive Director, Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers, said that “the RBI, in its 50th MPC meeting, decided to keep its stance on both policy rates and liquidity unchanged.

A key point to note is his emphasis on food inflation. On a net basis, we think the policy was nothing out of consensus and hence remains neutral for the markets.” According to market watchers, the recent trend in institutional activity indicates a clear trend. FIIs are in a risk-off mood and are playing it safe with sustained selling. During the last four days, FIIs have sold for Rs 20,228 crore in the cash market. –IANS avs/na