BENGALURU, Oct 17 (Reuters) – Indian shares fell in early trading on Monday, dragged down by metal stocks and in line with Asian peers amid growing fears that aggressive rate hikes by central banks globally would lead to a slowdown and weigh on corporate earnings.

The NSE Nifty 50 index (.NSEI) was 0.15% lower at 17,159.30 as of 0352 GMT, and the S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) fell 0.19% to 57,808.78. Both the indexes settled 1% higher in the previous session, notching weekly losses.

Nifty’s metal (.NIFTYMET) and realty (.NIFTYREAL) sub-indexes were among the top losers, falling more than 1% each.

JSW Steel Ltd (JSTL.NS) and Tata Steel Ltd (TISC.NS) were the worst performers on the Nifty 50, declining 1.7% and 1.2%, respectively.

Among other stocks, Shree Cement Ltd (SHCM.NS) fell 5% after it posted a 67.2% slump in second-quarter profit as fuel costs surged. read more

Cement maker ACC Ltd (ACC.NS) was 1.5% lower ahead of its quarterly results later in the day.

Meanwhile, the monetary policy committee of India’s central bank may lean more on data in deciding the key interest rate going ahead even as policymakers appeared divided on the future path of rate hikes, minutes of its September meeting suggested on Friday. read more

In broader Asia, equities slipped on Monday following another drubbing for Wall Street as investors brace for a further drastic tightening in global financial conditions.
($1 = 82.4000 Indian rupees)

Reporting by Rama Venkat in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza

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