The Sensex at the Bombay Stock Exchange dropped 287 points, or 1.7 per cent, to 16,580 in the first few minutes of trade, this morning, on continued selling by investors, ahead of industrial production data for July, and amid tumbling overseas markets. Later, weak industrial growth numbers dragged the Sensex even lower, and the benchmark index stood 463 points or 2.8 percent in negative territory, at 16,404 in afternoon trade, a short while ago. Other Asian markets also plunged, on renewed fears about Europe's sovereign debt crisis. The key stock indices in Japan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Singapore were hammered down by between 2 percent and 4 percent, today.