Markets Slide On IT, Banking Pressure; Nifty, Sensex End Lower

Indian equity markets closed lower on Thursday as selling pressure in IT and banking stocks weighed on investor sentiment during the Q1 earnings season.

Concerns around foreign institutional investor (FII) outflows amid trade deal uncertainty also contributed to the decline.

The Sensex slipped 375.24 points or 0.45% to settle at 82,259.24, after opening slightly higher at 82,753.53.

The index touched an intraday low of 82,219.27, dragged down by losses in major stocks like TCS, Infosys, and HDFC Bank.

The broader Nifty ended the day at 25,111.45, down 100.60 points or 0.40%.

“Indian equity benchmarks ended marginally lower as investors exercised caution amid subdued Q1 earnings announcements, particularly in the technology and banking sectors,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

He added that expensive valuations in large-cap stocks and continued FII withdrawals kept participants on the sidelines, although any favourable developments could improve sentiment.

Among the Sensex constituents, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Infosys, TCS, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, and HDFC were the major laggards. On the positive side, Tata Steel, Trent, Tata Motors, and Titan ended in the green.

In the Nifty50 pack, 19 stocks advanced while 31 declined.

Broader Markets End Lower

All major broader market indices also closed in the red. The Nifty Next 50 lost 159.10 points, the Nifty Midcap 100 fell 100 points, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 was down by 22.75 points.

Sectoral indices largely mirrored the broader trend. The Nifty IT index dropped 522 points, Nifty Bank declined by 230 points, and Nifty Financial Services was down 106 points. Nifty FMCG was the lone gainer for the day.

The rupee also weakened by 0.12% to trade at 86.02, influenced by the dollar index holding near 98.70 and weakness in local equities.

“Nifty remained mostly under selling pressure throughout the day as the index failed to move beyond the crucial resistance level of 25,260, leading to long unwinding. On the hourly chart, a consolidation breakout is visible, indicating weakening bullish momentum,” said Rupak De, analyst at LKP Securities.

Analysts expect the index to remain under pressure, potentially moving towards the 24,920–24,900 range, with 25,260 likely to act as a key resistance in the near term.

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