Mumbai, February 13 – The benchmark equity indices, Sensex and Nifty, fell by more than 1% on Friday due to a broad-selling trend, particularly in metal, IT, and commodity stocks, reflecting sluggish global markets.
Weaker-than-expected earnings and growing concerns about disruption caused by AI also dampened investor sentiment, traders said.
In a volatile trading session, the 30-share BSE Sensex dropped by 1,048.16 points, or 1.25%, closing at 82,626.76. During the day, the benchmark fell by 1,140.37 points, or 1.36%, hitting an intraday low of 82,534.55.
A total of 2,960 stocks declined, while 1,253 advanced and 151 remained unchanged on the BSE.
The 50-share NSE Nifty plunged by 336.10 points, or 1.30%, closing at 25,471.10. During the day, it dropped by 362.9 points, or 1.4%, hitting a low of 25,444.30.
Benchmark indices plummeted due to weaker-than-expected results, along with continued pressure on technology stocks amid concerns about AI-driven disruption, Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd, said.
"The Nifty IT index touched a 10-month low during the session before closing 1.4% lower, even as selective buying helped it recover from intraday lows. The sector continues to face headwinds amid rising concerns that rapid AI advancements could disrupt traditional service models and weigh on future revenue visibility," he noted.
On a weekly basis, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined by 953.64 points, or 1.14%, while NSE Nifty dropped by 222.6 points, or 0.86%.
The market capitalization of BSE-listed firms eroded by Rs 7,02,017.71 crore to Rs 4,65,46,643.20 crore (USD 5.13 trillion).
Among the Sensex constituents, Hindustan Unilever, Eternal, Titan, Tata Steel, Adani Ports, Tata Consultancy Services, PowerGrid, Reliance Industries, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Asian Paints, Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank and HCL Technologies were the major laggards.
On the other hand, Bajaj Finance and State Bank of India were the only gainers.
"Domestic equities ended lower following a highly volatile session, weighed down by weak global cues ahead of the upcoming US inflation data."
"Sentiment gained from the US-India trade deal has faded as renewed AI-driven disruption fears weigh on risk appetite, with markets worrying that Indian IT firms dependent on the labor arbitrage model may face tougher competitive pressure than their Nasdaq peers," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
This cautious tone extended across the broader market, pulling all major indices into negative territory, with most sectors closing in the red, he added.
"Metal stocks saw profit-booking amid a stronger dollar index, as reports of Russia’s return to the US-dollar settlement system heightened expectations of potential sanctions relief and raised concerns over weaker realisations for metal companies," Nair said.
The BSE SmallCap Select Index fell by 1.90%, while the MidCap Select Index slipped by 1.19%.
Among sectoral indices, Metal declined the most by 3.21%, followed by Realty and Commodities by 2.27% each, Utilities by 2.26%, Energy by 1.94%, Oil & Gas by 1.86%, Power by 1.85%, FMCG by 1.74%, and Services by 1.72%.
In the commodities space, gold and silver prices declined by up to 10% after the greenback strengthened on the back of stronger-than-expected US January jobs data, which reduced expectations of near-term interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve, Khemka said.
Precious metals prices declined by more than 5% in the national capital on Friday, with silver declining to Rs 2.55 lakh per kilogram, while gold dropped to Rs 1.58 lakh per 10 grams amid weak global trends.
The dollar gained further traction amid media reports that Russia may consider re-entering the dollar settlement system as part of a potential economic understanding with the US, adding additional pressure on precious metals.
The rupee consolidated in a narrow range and settled for the day 3 paise lower at 90.64 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday.
In Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng benchmark, Shanghai's SSE Composite index, Japan's Nikkei 225 index and South Korea's Kospi ended in the negative territory.
European markets are trading on a mixed note in mid-session deals. The US equities market ended up to 2% lower on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Foreign institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 108.42 crore on Thursday, while domestic institutional investors were also net buyers of stocks worth Rs 276.85 crore, according to exchange data.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.32% to USD 67.81 per barrel.
On Thursday, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined by 558.72 points to settle at 83,674.92. The 50-share NSE Nifty declined by 146.65 points to end at 25,807.20.
