Mumbai, Dec 8 (PTI) Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty nosedived on Monday after two consecutive days of gains, as investors rushed to take profits amid the unabated selling of stocks by foreign investors.

Analysts said investors turned defensive ahead of this week's US Federal Reserve policy decision, which further weakened the sentiment.

The 30-share BSE Sensex plunged by 609.68 points, or 0.71 per cent, to close at 85,102.69. During the day, it plummeted by 836.78 points, or 0.97 per cent, to hit the intraday low of 84,875.59.

Snapping a two-day gaining streak, the 50-share NSE Nifty declined by 225.90 points, or 0.86 per cent, to settle at 25,960.55. In the intraday session, it dropped 294.2 points, or 1.12 per cent, to hit a low of 25,892.25.

Among the Sensex constituents, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Eternal, Trent, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finserv, State Bank of India, PowerGrid, Asian Paints, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Titan, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Larsen & Toubro and Bharti Airtel were among the laggards.

Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank were the only gainers.

"The market experienced a broad-based decline, slipping below the 26,000-mark as investors turned cautious ahead of this week's Fed policy decision," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said.

He added that despite robust domestic growth figures and the RBI's recent rate cut, short-term sentiment remains overshadowed by global monetary policy concerns, persistent FII outflows, and currency depreciation.

"Volatility was further amplified by a surge in Japanese bond yields to multi-year highs, sparking fears of a potential unwinding of the yen carry trade, Nair said.

Other Asian markets largely closed on a positive note, with South Korea's KOSPI rising 1.34 per cent, Shanghai's SSE Composite index climbing by 0.54 per cent, and Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark increasing by 0.13 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 1.23 per cent.

The European markets were trading on a mixed note. Wall Street ended higher on Friday.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 438.90 crore on Friday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth Rs 4,189.17 crore, according to exchange data.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.61 per cent to USD 63.37 per barrel.

On Friday, the 30-share BSE Sensex benchmark advanced 447.05 points to settle at 85,712.37, while the 50-share NSE Nifty climbed 152.70 points to close at 26,186.45. PTI HG HVA

Sensex falls below 26,000 amid FII outflows, RBI rate cut context and US Fed policy uncertainty. Foreign institutional investor selling, within the FEMA and RBI context, depressed Indian equity benchmarks as investors booked profits and turned defensive ahead of an anticipated US Federal Reserve decision. Sensex fell below 26,000 and Nifty to 25,960.55 amid broad-based declines while DIIs provided partial support through net purchases; currency depreciation and rising global yields amplified volatility.