Sensex drops 550 pts, Nifty falls 160 pts in early trade

Banking majors were among the biggest losers, with HDFC Bank falling around 1.6 per cent, while ICICI Bank, SBI, and Kotak Mahindra Bank also declined sharply. IT stocks extended their weakness, with Infosys, HCLTech, Tech Mahindra, and Tata Consultancy Services slipping between 0.6 per cent and 1.1 per cent.