Markets dive, Infy crashes

Mumbai, August 18 

Vishal Sikka’s surprise resignation as Infosys CEO today threw markets off-track as the Sensex careened off 271 points while the Nifty managed to end above 9,800.

The fast-paced developments at India’s second-largest IT firm were the talking point throughout as the stock took a severe beating dragging down the markets. It ended up as the biggest loser on the 30-share Sensex map — sinking as much as 9.60% to Rs 923.10, the lowest since May 2, 2017.

Intra-day, it had even hit a 52-week low, but then recovered somewhat. The company’s market valuation slumped Rs 22,518.98 crore to Rs 2,12,033.02 crore.

Moreover, a deadly attack in Spain and growing concerns over the direction of US President Donald Trump’s economic agenda cast a long shadow, analysts said.

After three straight sessions of gains, the Sensex opened lower and dropped further before ending down 270.78 points, or 0.85%, at 31,524.68. — PTI