MUMBAI– Indian equities snapped a six-session winning streak on Friday, closing lower as investors turned cautious ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks at the Jackson Hole symposium.
The Sensex ended the day at 81,306.85, down 693.86 points or 0.85 percent. The 30-share benchmark opened weak at 81,951.48 against the previous close of 82,000.71 and slid further to an intraday low of 81,291.77 as selling intensified. The Nifty 50 also lost ground, finishing at 24,870.10, down 213.65 points or 0.85 percent.
“The market ended in the red, erasing gains from the past three sessions,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. “Caution prevailed ahead of Powell’s speech, which is expected to provide direction on global liquidity and the path of interest rates.” He added that U.S. trade tariffs on India, linked to its stance on Russia, have raised near-term concerns among institutional investors.
Major laggards on the Sensex included Asian Paints, Ultratech Cement, Tata Steel, ITC, HCL Tech, Kotak Bank, TCS, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, SBI, and ICICI Bank. Among the few stocks that managed to limit losses were Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, and BEL.
Sectoral indices also faced broad selling pressure. Nifty Financial Services declined 0.96 percent, Nifty Bank slipped 1.09 percent, Nifty FMCG dropped 1 percent, and Nifty IT fell 0.79 percent. Broader markets remained relatively range-bound, with Nifty Smallcap 100 down 0.26 percent, Midcap 100 lower by 0.14 percent, and Nifty 100 off 0.82 percent.
The rupee, which initially gained on optimism around GST reductions, closed weaker by 25 paise at 87.50 against the U.S. dollar. Persistent foreign institutional investor outflows weighed on sentiment.
“Focus now shifts to Powell’s speech, which will influence the dollar index and rupee trajectory,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research at LKP Securities. “The rupee has immediate support at 87.75 and resistance at 87.15, suggesting range-bound but volatile trade in the near term.”
Global crude prices and overall risk sentiment are also expected to guide market direction in the coming sessions. (Source: IANS)
