From correspondents in Maharashtra, India, 03:30 PM IST

A key Indian equities index fell sharply about an hour before the closing bell Friday, and was ruling 204 points below its last closing figure.

Around 2.33 p.m., the 30-scrip benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange, Sensex, which opened at 16,915.96 points, was ruling at 16,636.65 points, down 206.89 points or 1.23 percent.

The S and amp;P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) also slipped into the red at 4,949.1 points, down 1.06 percent.

Selling pressure affected broader market indices, which saw their gains wiped out. The BSE midcap index was 0.29 percent lower and the BSE smallcap index down 0.02 percent.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)