Benchmark indices fell sharply on Thursday, dragged down by heightened volatility and lingering concerns around global trade developments.
The S&P BSE Sensex dropped 537.11 points to 82,189.53 by 12:37 pm, while the NSE Nifty50 fell 150.10 points to 25,069.80. All broader market indices were in the red as market sentiment weakened.
Traders pointed to a mix of domestic and global triggers. While India Inc’s Q1 earnings have so far been a mixed bag—strong in pockets but underwhelming in others—investors remain on edge over the uncertainty surrounding the India-US trade agreement.
“An area of concern in the near-term is the uncertainty regarding an interim trade deal between US and India. If India doesn’t get a favourable deal with tariffs below 20 percent that would be a short-term negative from the market perspective,” said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited.
The much-anticipated deal, which was expected to be finalised during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the UK, appears to be taking longer than expected.
Meanwhile, global cues remain tepid. Wall Street closed lower overnight amid fresh concerns over inflation and interest rate commentary from the US Fed. As a result, IT stocks such as Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCLTech and TCS fell sharply during the session.
A decline in heavyweight stocks such as Reliance and SBI also pulled down the main indices on Dalal Street.
The dollar’s strength and foreign institutional outflows have also added to the pressure on Indian equities.
Volatility continued to rise through the session, reflecting investor nervousness ahead of key earnings due later this week. Sectors like IT, pharma, and FMCG were among the top laggards, while only a few PSU banks showed some resilience. Analysts say the market may remain choppy in the short term until there’s more clarity on global trade talks and domestic earnings visibility improves.
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