The Sensex ended at 16,026, down 156 points and the Nifty closed at 4,861, lower by 46 points.
For the most part of the day, the markets traded on a firm note.
However, the concerns regarding the rupee touching new lows against the US dollar weighed on the overall sentiment which intensified selling pressure in the latter half of the trading session.
Asian markets ended higher in trades today. The Hang Seng advanced 117 points to 19,039, Nikkei jumped 95 points to 8,729 and the Shanghai advanced 25 points to close at 2,373.
The European markets were also trading higher. The CAC 40 index jumped 18 points to 3,045, DAX advanced 16 points to 6,376 and the FTSE was up 44 points at 5,349 levels.
Tata Power was the top loser among the Sensex stocks, down 5.3% to Rs 90. Maruti Suzuki, Sterlite Industries, SBI, Hindalco, Suin Pharma, Larsen & Toubro, Gail India, DLF, HDFC Bank, NTPC, Coal India and mahindra & Mahindra were also among the losers, down 1.4-4.5% each. On the other hand, Tata Motors, TCS, BHEL and HDFC were among the notable gainers.
Selling pressure was visible across the sectors. Metal and banking stocks were amongst the worst hit. The BSE metal index was the top sectoral loser down nearly 2% or 185 points to close at 9,934 levels. Bankex also slipped 164 points or 1.5% to shut shop at 10,678
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