MUMBAI– Indian equities closed lower for the fifth straight session on Thursday as investors booked profits and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to pull out funds, with heavy selling in IT shares weighing on the market.
The benchmark Sensex fell 555.95 points, or 0.68 percent, to end at 81,159.68. The 30-share index opened weak at 81,574.31, compared with Wednesday’s close of 81,715.63, and touched an intraday low of 81,092.89.
The broader Nifty 50 index closed at 24,890.85, down 166.05 points, or 0.66 percent.
“Indian markets extended their losing streak for a fifth straight session as investors booked profits amid persistent FII outflows and uncertainty over U.S.-India trade talks, which are expected to weigh on Q2 GDP growth,” an analyst said.
Selling was broad-based, with declines across auto, IT, pharma, and healthcare sectors. Metals, however, advanced on the back of China’s liquidity support measures and concerns over copper supply.
Market sentiment also remained cautious ahead of India’s H2 FY26 borrowing program and key U.S. economic data due later this week.
Among Sensex stocks, Trent, PowerGrid, Tata Motors, TCS, Asian Paints, NTPC, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj FinServ, Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Tech, Titan, Kotak Bank, Tech Mahindra, L&T, SBI, and Ultratech Cement ended in the red. BEL, Axis Bank, and Bharti Airtel bucked the trend to close higher.
Sectoral indices reflected the broader weakness. Nifty Auto dropped 249 points (0.92 percent), Nifty FMCG fell 270 points (0.49 percent), Nifty IT slumped 445 points (1.27 percent), Nifty Financial Services lost 141 points (0.53 percent), and Nifty Bank shed 145 points (0.26 percent).
The weakness extended across the broader market as well. Nifty Next 50 declined 514 points (0.75 percent), Nifty 100 slipped 174 points (0.68 percent), Nifty Midcap 100 fell 368 points (0.64 percent), and Nifty Small Cap 100 dropped 102 points (0.57 percent). (Source: IANS)
