Indian shares mark 2-1/2 week closing low; anxiety around RBI, Fed

* BSE index falls 0.27 pct; NSE ends 0.22 pct lower * India's wholesale price inflation hits 14-month high * GlaxoSmithKline Pharma surges on open offer by parent * Overseas investors snap 10-day buying streak in Indianshares By Abhishek Vishnoi MUMBAI, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Indian shares fell for a fifthstraight session on Monday as investors pared positions inblue-chip stocks such as Reliance Industries ahead of theReserve Bank of India and the U.S. Federal Reserve's policymeetings later this week. India's wholesale price inflation hit a 14-month high inNovember, as food price surged, cementing expectations thecentral bank will raise interest rates for a third consecutivetime at its policy review on Wednesday. Traders say a rate hike, although factored in to an extent,could undermine the confidence of investors and Indian companiesas the economy remains in a fragile state with growthlanguishing below 5 percent. Foreign institutional investors sold Indian shares worth4.32 billion rupees ($69.49 million) on Friday, to snap their10-day buying streak, raising concerns ahead of the Fed'smeeting ending on Wednesday. The Fed is widely expected to start withdrawing its monetarystimulus by early next year. "Fears about the prospects of a hawkish stance by the RBIgovernor have increased in the background of recent gloomy CPIand WPI data," said Gaurang Shah, assistant vice president at Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Ltd. Anything above 25 bps rate hike could spook the markets inthe near term, Shah added. The benchmark BSE index fell 0.27 percent, or 56.06points, to 20,659.52, marking its lowest close since Nov. 28.The index is now 4 percent away from a record high of 21,483.74hit a week earlier. The broader NSE index ended lower 0.22 percent, or13.70 points, at 6,154.70, marking its biggest losing streaksince the seven days ending Nov. 13. Among blue-chip shares, Reliance Industries Ltd fell 2.3 percent, while Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd ended lower 2.6 percent. Among rate-sensitive stocks, mortgage lender HousingDevelopment Finance Corporation Ltd fell 1 percent,while Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd ended 2.5 percentlower. Tata Chemicals Ltd fell 1.2 percent after the RBIplaced a cap on further foreign institutional investments in thecompany. Clariant Chemicals India Ltd fell 2.1 percentafter the company said it intends to acquire PlastichemixIndustries for 1.35 billion rupees. Steel shares fell after a measure of growth in China's vastfactory sector slowed to a three-month low in December asreduced output offset a pick-up in new orders. Tata Steel Ltd fell 1.5 percent, while JindalSteel and Power Ltd ended 3.2 percent lower. However, among stocks that gained, GlaxoSmithKlinePharmaceuticals Ltd surged 18.9 percent after parentGlaxoSmithKline Plc said it plans to spend over $1billion to buy up to 20.6 million shares to raise its stake inits Indian unit. For additional stocks on the move double click FACTORS TO WATCH * Euro zone activity data helps euro, but Fed holds * Oil above $109 as Libyan oil ports stay shut * Europe lifted by PMI data, China wobble hits Asia * Foreign institutional investor flows * For closing rates of Indian ADRs ASIA-PACIFIC STOCK MARKETS: Pan-Asia........ Japan....... S.Korea... S.E. Asia....... Hong Kong... Taiwan.... Australia/NZ.... India....... China..... OTHER MARKETS: Wall Street .... Gold ....... Currency.. Eurostocks..... Oil ........ JP bonds... ADR Report ..... LME metals. US bonds.. Stocks News US.. Stocks News Europe DIARIES & DATA: Indian Data Watch Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Indian diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead TOP NEWS: For top Asian company news, double click on: U.S. company news European company news Forex news Global Economy news Technology news Telecoms news Media news Banking news Politics/General Asia Macro data