Indian Markets Open Lower Amid FII Selling; Midcap, Smallcap Stocks Cushion Market

Indian markets opened lower on Friday as selling pressure in heavyweight stocks dragged down benchmark indices, even as midcap and smallcap segments offered some stability.

Indices Open in Red

At 9:25 AM, the BSE Sensex slipped 171 points or 0.21% to 82,087, while the Nifty declined 35 points or 0.14% to 25,075. Key laggards included Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

Top Gainers and Losers

Gainers in the Sensex pack included:

• M&M
• Tata Steel
• Power Grid
• L&T
• Infosys
• NTPC
• TCS
• Maruti Suzuki

The top losers were:

• Axis Bank
• Bharti Airtel
• Kotak Mahindra Bank
• Tech Mahindra
• HDFC Bank
• Zomato
• HUL
• Bajaj Finance
• ICICI Bank
• Titan

Sectoral Performance Mixed

On the sectoral front:

• Gainers: Auto, IT, PSU Banks, Metal, Realty, Media, Energy, Infrastructure, PSE, and Commodities.
• Losers: Financial Services, FMCG, and Private Banks.

FII Selling Pressures Indian Markets

According to Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, India has underperformed most global markets so far in July, with the Nifty falling 1.6%. He attributed this to foreign institutional investors (FIIs) resuming their selling pattern.

“FIIs were sellers in the first three months, buyers in the next three, and July again shows a selling trend. Unless positive news emerges, the downtrend may continue,” he said.

On July 17, FIIs offloaded equities worth ₹3,694 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) remained net buyers for the ninth straight session, investing ₹2,820 crore.

Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research at Axis Securities, noted that Nifty closed lower for the fifth time in seven sessions on Thursday but still held above the rising trendline from the May 9 low.

“The daily candle formed a bearish engulfing pattern. 25,000 is the key support, while 25,340 remains crucial resistance,” he said.

Global Cues Remain Positive

Major Asian markets traded in the green, with Shanghai, Hong Kong, Bangkok, and Jakarta posting gains. Tokyo and Seoul traded slightly lower. Meanwhile, US indices closed higher on Thursday, reflecting improved investor sentiment.

Despite early losses, domestic markets remain resilient in mid and small-cap segments, even as institutional flows and global signals shape short-term movements.

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