The Indian stock markets extended their fall on Thursday, tracking weak global cues and continued selling by foreign investors. The BSE Sensex declined 432 points to 71,069 in early trade, while the NSE Nifty 50 index fell 151 points to 21,420.
All sectoral indices were trading in the red, with financials, oil & gas, metal, and IT stocks witnessing significant losses. On the Sensex pack, Asian Paints, NTPC, PowerGrid, HDFC Bank, IndusInd Bank, and JSW Steel were among the top losers. Meanwhile, Sun Pharma, Axis Bank, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, M&M, and Bharti Airtel bucked the trend to trade higher.
The selloff comes a day after the Sensex plummeted 1,628 points and the Nifty plunged 460 points, led by a sharp fall in HDFC Bank after its Q3 results disappointed investors. Analysts pointed out that valuations remain elevated and markets are prone to sell-offs triggered by negative news or events.
According to V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, the sell-off also reflects emerging market weakness amid foreign portfolio investor (FPI) outflows driven by rising bond yields in the US. On Wednesday, FPIs sold equities worth Rs 10,578 crore in the cash market segment. However, some support from domestic institutional investors (DIIs) is likely in fairly valued large caps.
Asian markets presented a mixed picture, with Shanghai lower while Seoul, Tokyo, and Hong Kong trading higher. US markets had declined overnight, further weighing on sentiment. Market participants will closely monitor FII flows and global cues for further direction.
