India's key share index slid on Tuesday on disappointing results from heavyweights State Bank of India and Reliance Industries Ltd. The 30-share Mumbai index fell 0.83 percent to 5,075.88 points after rising 3.2 percent in the last 4 sessions. "State Bank results were disappointing, and even Reliance numbers were not spectacular," said Ajit Surana, managing director of Dimensional Securities.
State Bank, India's largest commercial bank, posted an 18 percent rise in first quarter profit, but its shares fell nearly six percent as the figure was inflated by an accounting change.
Reliance reported a 30 percent rise in net profit, slightly ahead of expectations. But after rallying 10 percent over the past week, its shares slid 2.7 percent.
The two stocks' combined weighting in the Bombay benchmark index is nearly a fifth.
Concerns about an erratic monsoon also has markets worried because growth in the rain-dependent economy could be hit.
Cumulative rainfall in the country to July 21 was 12.3 percent below normal, and showed no signs of recovering.
The rupee appreciated for a second straight day, as exporters sold remittances a day after the central bank stepped in to halt a depreciating trend. Still, wary importers continued to buy dollars, containing the currency's rise.
The rupee rose 0.1 percent to close at 46.2150/2250 per dollar, after having dealt at a high of 46.15 in a late afternoon deal. It has appreciated by 0.22 percent in two sessions after losing 1.4 percent in the past two weeks.
Federal bonds lost ground as the market braced for fresh supplies worth about 85 billion rupees later in the week, with an on-tap sale of state government loans due to open on Wednesday.
Underlying sentiment is slightly bearish because of a firm trend in the inflation rate, which has persisted since early May.
The key 10-year yield closed at 5.9438 percent, compared with 5.9248 percent on Monday.
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