Weak global cues, particularly in the light of sliding oil prices, pushed benchmark indices lower. The Sensex was trading below the 25,000 points mark, while the Nifty fell below the 7600 points mark.

Shares in auto makers lost ground, following a ban of diesel vehicles in Delhi by the National Green Tribunal. Shares of Mahindra and Mahindra, Tata Motors and Force Motors were all lower in trade.

Banking stocks, where investment of Foreign Portfolio Investors is very high, also saw some selling pressure. ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and State Bank of India were among the big losers. Several banking stocks had fallen to fresh52-week lows on Friday.

Cairn India fell as crude prices slumped on Friday. Mid cap stocks also saw some selling pressure with notable losers from the space being Just Dial, Voltas and Wockhardt Pharma.

Metal stocks also continued to trade weak with stocks like NMDC and Coal India among the big losers in trade.

Meanwhile, the rupee breached the 67 mark and was last trading at 67.04 to the US dollar. Sustained weakness in the rupee is also likely to pull down share prices, as FII returns in dollar terms could diminish.

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