Sensex Declines 796 Points, Nifty Falls Below 20,000, Rupee Rebounds 23 Paise Ahead of US Fed Decision

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled more than 1 per cent today due to selling in index heavyweights in tandem with weak global trends ahead of the US Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.

Falling for the second day running, the 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 796 points or 1.18 per cent to settle at 66,800.84. During the day, it tanked 868.7 points or 1.28 per cent to 66,728.14.

The NSE Nifty declined 231.90 points or 1.15 per cent to end below the 20,000 mark at 19,901.40.

US bond yields surging to 16-year high levels and fears of high crude oil prices fueling commodity inflation also hit the investor sentiment, according to analysts.