MUMBAI— Indian stock markets closed sharply lower on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 25% tariff on imports from India, amid stalled trade deal talks between the two countries.
The benchmark Sensex dropped 585.67 points, or 0.72%, to settle at 80,599.91. The 30-share index opened weak at 81,074.41, down from the previous close of 81,185.58, and extended losses throughout the day, hitting an intra-day low of 80,495.57 amid broad-based selling pressure, particularly in the Pharma and IT sectors.
The Nifty 50 also declined, closing at 24,565.35 — a loss of 203 points or 0.82%.
Top losers on the Sensex included Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki, Infosys, Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, BEL, Bajaj Finserv, ICICI Bank, HCL Tech, Mahindra & Mahindra, and TCS. On the upside, Trent, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, and ITC ended the day in positive territory.
Sectoral indices saw widespread declines. Nifty Pharma plunged 759 points (–3.33%), Nifty Auto lost 244.90 points (–1.04%), Nifty IT fell 652 points (–1.85%), and Nifty Bank was down 344.35 points (–0.62%). Nifty FMCG was the exception, ending the day up 384 points.
The broader market mirrored the benchmark indices, with Nifty Midcap 100 down 763 points (–1.33%), Nifty Smallcap 100 falling 298 points (–1.66%), and Nifty 100 shedding 230 points (–0.91%).
Analysts noted that the markets kicked off the August derivatives series on a weak note, continuing the correction seen in recent sessions.
“Markets are dealing with a mixed earnings season, and the tariff announcement from the U.S., coupled with persistent foreign outflows, is dragging sentiment lower,” said Ajit Mishra, SVP – Research, Religare Broking Ltd. “Nifty is nearing a key support level at 24,450. A breach could lead to a retest of the 200-day EMA near 24,180.”
Rupak De of LKP Securities added that further downside is possible if the index breaks below 24,400. On the upside, resistance levels are seen at 24,600–24,650 and 24,850. (Source: IANS)
