The equity markets tanked on Tuesday as the lack of any big-bang policy announcement in the Railway Budget triggered widespread profit-booking on the domestic bourses. Even the proposal to invite foreign direct investment (FDI) and allowing greater participation of the private sector in future rail infrastructure projects couldn’t lift investor sentiment as they had built huge expectations around the Rail Budget and the forthcoming General Budget.
After opening on a positive note, both the Sensex and Nifty tanked around two per cent each on Tuesday, their biggest single-day loss in over 10 months. The Sensex plunged 517.97 points (1.98 per cent) to end the session at 25,582.11, while the Nifty slumped 163.95 points (2.11 per cent) to close the day at 7,623.20.