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Sensex drops for 6th day ahead of RBI, Fed meetings

Indian stocks declined for a sixth day, with the benchmark index retreating to a three-week low, ahead of the central bank’s policy meeting on Wednesday.

HDFC Bank Ltd, India’s biggest lender by value, tumbled the most since September. Coal India Ltd, the largest producer of the fuel, fell the most in a month. Bharti Airtel Ltd, the nation’s largest mobile-phone operator, posted the biggest gain since October.

The S&P BSE Sensex lost 0.2 per cent to 20,609.12, according to preliminary closing prices in Mumbai. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed from a three-month low after manufacturing accelerated in the US and Europe, and as investors await the outcome of a US Federal Reserve meeting. India’s central bank meets on Wednesday to review monetary policy. The Sensex dropped on Monday after data showed inflation in November was faster than economists estimated.

Wholesale prices climbed 7.5 per cent, compared with 7 per cent predicted by economists in a Bloomberg survey. Consumer prices rose 11.24 per cent, compared with a forecast 10 per cent increase. Most economists surveyed expect RBI Governor to increase the repurchase rate to 8 per cent from 7.75 per cent on Wednesday.