MUMBAI: Benchmark equity indices started Friday’s session in the red as fresh rules on H-1B visas announced by US President took effect from September 21, sparking a sharp sell-off in IT stocks and dampening investor sentiment.
At 9:25 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 267.56 points at 82,358.67, while the NSE Nifty50 slipped 48.60 points to 25,278.45.
IT Sector Drag
The heaviest pressure came from technology counters. Tech Mahindra plunged 4.08%, Infosys fell 2.53%, HCL Technologies declined 2.46%, TCS dropped 2.21%, and Sun Pharma was down 0.40%. The Nifty IT index slid 2.37%, marking the steepest sectoral fall of the morning.
Expert Take
According to Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, the market may witness mixed cues today.
“The IT sector is clearly under pressure from the H-1B visa announcement, while domestic consumption-oriented sectors could benefit from the boost provided by lower GST rates kicking in from today,” he said.
He further noted, “This festival season is likely to deliver one of the strongest consumption booms in recent times. India’s year-long underperformance against global markets may be nearing its end, but high valuations remain a concern, ruling out any runaway rally.”
Sectoral Performance
Losers: Nifty Pharma (-0.48%), Nifty Healthcare (-0.31%), Nifty Consumer Durables (-0.02%).
Gainers: Nifty Realty (+0.78%), Nifty PSU Bank (+0.73%), Nifty Media (+0.65%), Nifty Metal (+0.52%), Nifty Financial Services 25/50 (+0.40%), Nifty Auto (+0.25%), Nifty Oil & Gas (+0.17%), Nifty FMCG (+0.15%), and Nifty Private Bank (+0.14%).
Early Gainers
Among individual stocks, UltraTech Cement rose 0.85%, Adani Ports gained 0.78%, Trent climbed 0.73%, Eicher Motors added 0.65%, and Kotak Mahindra Bank advanced 0.45%.
Meanwhile, Nifty Midcap100 edged up 0.06% and Nifty Smallcap100 inched higher by 0.03%, while India VIX spiked 5.09%, signaling heightened volatility.
Outlook
Vijayakumar added that the low interest rate regime could fuel demand and profitability in the financial sector. “Banking stocks, which were weighed down by NIM compression fears, are now fairly valued and positioned for reasonable returns,” he observed.
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