Indian equity markets opened lower on Friday, following a bearish trend from US markets, with the BSE Sensex slipping 279 points (0.34%) to 82,216 and the Nifty 50 index falling 69 points (0.27%) to 25,180 as of 9:47 AM.
Selling pressure in midcap and smallcap stocks primarily drove the downturn.
The Nifty Midcap 100 index decreased by 413 points (0.70%), settling at 58,652, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index dropped 75 points (0.40%) to 18,876.
In the Sensex basket, key stocks such as Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC, Tata Steel, UltraTech Cement, Reliance Industries, L&T, SBI, Bharti Airtel, Nestle, and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the top losers.
Conversely, IT and banking stocks provided some support, with TCS, IndusInd Bank, HCL Technologies, ITC, Infosys, Wipro, and Tech Mahindra emerging as the leading gainers.
Sector-wise, Financial Services, FMCG, Metals, Realty, Energy, and Infrastructure faced significant losses, while Information Technology, PSU Banks, and the Auto sector showed resilience.
The broader market sentiment remains cautious, with 1,335 stocks declining and only 814 advancing on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
Asian markets exhibited mixed performance, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Seoul in positive territory, while Jakarta and Bangkok faced declines. Thursday saw US markets close in the red, further influencing investor sentiment in India.
Market analysts noted, “The sharp correction of 2.1 percent in the Nifty yesterday was more due to the massive Foreign Institutional Investors’ selling rather than fears of Middle East tensions escalating. The last three days have witnessed huge FII selling of Rs 30,614 crore in the cash market.”
They added, “The market will start responding to the Q2 results which will start flowing from next week onwards. Leading banks are poised for a recovery.”
On 3 October, FIIs sold equities valued at Rs 15,243 crore, while domestic institutional investors purchased Rs 12,914 crore, indicating a potential shift in market dynamics.
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