Indian shares tumbled to a one-month low and were headed for their sixth straight session of losses on Tuesday, weighed down by geopolitical tensions, a looming Federal Reserve decision and high oil prices.
The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index was down 1.75% at 16,849.75 by 0350 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex dropped 1.79% to 56,463.04.
Tensions between the West and Russia over Ukraine and a U.S. Federal Reserve meeting that could signal tighter monetary policy kept investors on edge and sent Asian peers and U.S. futures lower, after a chaotic Wall Street session overnight. [MKTS/GLOB]
The Nifty IT index sank 2.5% to its lowest since late November, while the Nifty Energy index slid 2.3%.
Meanwhile, Axis Bank rose as much as 2.2% after the private-sector lender beat estimates for quarterly profit.
Nifty components Maruti Suzuki and Cipla are due to report results on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
