Sensex Drops 156 Points, Nifty Slips Below 24,400 as Global Cues Weigh on Markets

Indian benchmark indices opened lower on Thursday as investors remained cautious amid elevated crude oil prices, mixed global cues and selling pressure in heavyweight IT and financial stocks.

At 9:16 am, the BSE Sensex was trading at 77,809.53, down 156.82 points, or 0.20 per cent. The NSE Nifty stood at 24,367.90, lower by 67.05 points, or 0.28 per cent.

The weak opening followed another subdued session on Wednesday. The Sensex had declined 187.90 points, or 0.24 per cent, to close at 77,966.35, while the Nifty ended at 24,435.95, down 0.28 per cent.

IT, Financial Stocks Weigh on Benchmarks

Several heavyweight stocks came under pressure in early trade, dragging the benchmark indices lower. Infosys, Titan, Reliance Industries and TCS were among the prominent losers.

Infosys declined 0.85 per cent, Titan fell 0.94 per cent, TCS slipped 0.55 per cent and Reliance Industries dropped 1.14 per cent. Major banking stocks including ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, SBI and Axis Bank also traded in the red.

IndiGo emerged as the strongest early gainer, rising 1.78 per cent. Bharti Airtel advanced 1.13 per cent, while L&T, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance and Eternal were also among the stocks trading higher.

Broader Market Holds Up

The broader market showed greater resilience compared with the benchmark indices. The Nifty Smallcap 50 rose 0.32 per cent, while the Smallcap 100 and Smallcap 250 gained 0.30 per cent and 0.28 per cent, respectively.

The Nifty Midcap 100 slipped 0.16 per cent, while the Midcap 150 declined 0.08 per cent. Meanwhile, India VIX fell 1.30 per cent to 11.54, pointing to relatively contained near-term volatility expectations.

Realty, IT Stocks Lead Sectoral Declines

Sectoral performance was mixed in early trading. Nifty Media gained 0.79 per cent, followed by Nifty Auto at 0.37 per cent and Nifty Chemicals at 0.29 per cent.

Realty stocks faced the strongest pressure, with the Nifty Realty index falling 0.82 per cent. Nifty IT declined 0.63 per cent, while Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Financial Services fell 0.40 per cent and 0.38 per cent, respectively.

Nifty Pharma, PSU Bank, Oil & Gas and Consumer Durables were also trading lower.

Crude Prices Remain Key Market Risk

V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, expects the market to remain in a consolidation phase in the near term. He pointed to India’s economic fundamentals, earnings momentum and steady domestic liquidity as factors supporting equities.

According to Vijayakumar, indicators such as GST collections, freight activity, automobile sales and credit growth could provide further support to economic growth and corporate earnings.

However, he identified elevated crude oil prices and uncertainty over their future direction as major risks. Higher oil prices could increase India’s import bill and put pressure on inflation and the rupee.

He advised investors to remain invested while continuing systematic investments.

Asian Markets Mixed

Asian equities traded largely higher on Thursday, helped by strength in artificial intelligence and semiconductor stocks.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.6 per cent in early trade, while South Korea’s Kospi surged 3.9 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was marginally higher and the Shanghai Composite rose around 0.4 per cent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was the exception, declining 0.6 per cent.

The positive Asian trend followed gains on Wall Street. The S&P 500 rose 0.3 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.5 per cent, while the Dow Jones ended marginally lower.

US Inflation, Fed Outlook in Focus

Investor sentiment was supported by a moderation in US inflation. Consumer prices rose 3.4 per cent year-on-year in July, compared with 3.5 per cent in June.

The 10-year US Treasury yield eased to 4.68 per cent from 4.70 per cent. Despite the improved inflation picture, crude remained a concern, with US crude settling near $82.20 a barrel and Brent crude around $87.97.

For India, sustained high oil prices could weigh on inflation, the import bill and the rupee, keeping the commodity in focus for investors.

Technical Outlook

Geojit Investments Chief Market Strategist Anand James said the recent move above the 20-day moving average has created the possibility of a trend reversal, with initial upside targets around 24,540-24,666 and further potential toward 24,850-25,100.

However, he expects consolidation as the index approaches the 24,490 level. A failure to sustain the recovery could open the way toward 24,240-24,060, although he considers a sharp decline toward those levels less likely at present.