A sharp warning from global consulting giant Accenture about slowing demand for IT services has reignited concerns over the outlook for India's technology sector. The development triggered a steep fall in Infosys ADRs in New York and could weigh heavily on Indian IT stocks today. Meanwhile, a widening rainfall deficit across the country is emerging as a bigger threat to economic growth, even as advance tax collections suggest corporate earnings remain healthy.
Crude oil and gold prices have retreated as Middle East peace efforts ease supply concerns and strengthen the US dollar.
IT stocks may face selling pressure after Accenture flagged weaker demand for technology services.
Reliance Industries' annual general meeting will be closely watched for major announcements.
A prolonged monsoon shortfall is raising concerns about farm output and GDP growth.
Corporate tax collections remain strong, signalling resilience in business activity.
Gift Nifty indicates a weak opening for Indian equities.
Gift Nifty closed at 23,970 on Thursday night and briefly climbed to 24,028 early Friday before slipping. The trend points to a negative opening for Indian markets.
The India Meteorological Department said southwest monsoon rainfall remains 40 percent below normal after 18 days of the season.
Key concerns include:
Around 67 percent of the country has received rainfall at least 20 percent below normal.
Major agricultural regions have recorded deficits ranging from 27 percent to 84 percent.
There are no immediate signs of a significant improvement in rainfall.
A strong El Niño pattern has worsened the situation beyond earlier estimates.
If the trend continues, the rainfall deficit could exceed 50 percent by month-end, potentially hurting agricultural production and overall economic growth.
Advance tax collections for the first instalment of June rose 15.3 percent.
Corporate tax collections increased 16 percent.
Personal income tax collections grew 12.7 percent.
The numbers indicate that corporate profitability remains relatively healthy despite global uncertainties.
Wall Street recovered strongly after the previous day's weakness following the Federal Reserve decision.
Technology stocks led the rally:
Intel jumped 10.6 percent after announcing cooperation with Apple in chip design.
Micron gained 9 percent.
Nvidia advanced 3 percent.
Accenture plunged 17 percent after warning of slower business growth.
Major indices closed higher:
Dow Jones rose 72.15 points (0.14 percent) to 51,564.70.
S&P 500 gained 80.48 points (1.08 percent) to 7,500.58.
Nasdaq Composite surged 496.28 points (1.91 percent) to 26,517.93.
US futures were slightly lower on Friday morning.
The biggest impact came in Indian technology ADRs.
Infosys ADR plunged 9.66 percent during regular trading before recovering slightly.
Wipro ADR fell 3.63 percent.
HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank ADRs ended with modest gains.
Accenture's warning on weaker IT spending was the main trigger behind the sell-off.
Asian markets traded in different directions.
Japan's Nikkei rose 0.75 percent to a new record above 71,900.
South Korea's Kospi surged 2 percent and crossed 9,000 for the first time.
Australia's benchmark index fell about 1 percent.
Hong Kong and Shanghai closed lower on Thursday.
Chinese markets are closed today for a holiday.
Despite weakness in IT shares, banking and financial stocks helped Indian markets advance for a fifth consecutive session.
Foreign portfolio investors remained net sellers, offloading ₹1,025.20 crore worth of shares, while domestic institutions bought a net ₹3,516.81 crore.
Thursday's closing levels:
Sensex: 77,409.98 (+0.33 percent)
Nifty 50: 24,168.00 (+0.37 percent)
Bank Nifty: 57,963.80 (+0.66 percent)
Nifty Midcap 100: 62,379.25 (+0.41 percent)
Nifty Smallcap 100: 18,705.60 (+0.44 percent)
Federal Bank touched a record ₹324 before ending at ₹321.30. South Indian Bank also hit a fresh high during the session.
A stronger dollar and expectations of higher US interest rates continue to pressure precious metals.
Gold fell from $4,331 to a low of $4,183 an ounce before closing at $4,210.40.
Prices slipped again in early trading to around $4,185.
Silver declined to $65.45 an ounce.
In Kerala, 22-carat gold fell ₹1,160 per sovereign to ₹1,09,640.
Industrial metals remained under pressure due to higher-rate concerns and dollar strength.
Copper fell 0.90 percent to $13,612 per tonne.
Aluminium declined 0.28 percent to $3,409.59.
Zinc, nickel and tin also moved lower.
Oil prices eased as Middle East tensions continued to cool.
Brent crude, which closed at $79.85 a barrel on Thursday, fell nearly 1 percent to $78.96.
WTI crude moved towards $75.14 a barrel.
The Indian rupee strengthened significantly on Thursday.
The dollar fell 20 paise to close at ₹94.33.
In the offshore NDF market, the dollar eased further towards ₹94.30.
Higher interest-rate expectations and a stronger dollar weighed on digital assets.
Bitcoin slipped below $63,000.
Ether fell below $1,710.
Solana traded below $70.
Sensex: 77,409.98 (+0.33%)
Nifty 50: 24,168.00 (+0.37%)
Bank Nifty: 57,963.80 (+0.66%)
Nifty Midcap 100: 62,379.25 (+0.41%)
Nifty Smallcap 100: 18,705.60 (+0.44%)
Dow Jones: 51,564.70 (+0.14%)
S&P 500: 7,500.58 (+1.08%)
Nasdaq: 26,517.93 (+1.91%)
Dollar/₹: ₹94.33 (-₹0.20)
Gold (ounce): $4,210.40 (-$47.50)
Gold (sovereign): ₹1,09,640 (-₹1,160)
Brent crude: $79.85 (+$0.30)