Indian stock markets ended sharply lower on Friday, with benchmark indices logging steep losses amid a broad-based selloff. The BSE Sensex dropped nearly 700 points while the NSE Nifty 50 closed below the 25,150 mark.
The Sensex opened at 82,820.76 against its previous close of 83,190.28 and plunged 748 points, or nearly 1 percent, to an intraday low of 82,442.25. The Nifty 50 began the session at 25,255.50 versus Thursday’s close of 25,355.25, slipping to an intraday low of 25,129 — also a decline of almost 1 percent.
By the close of trade, the Sensex had lost 690 points, or 0.83 percent, to settle at 82,500.47. The Nifty 50 ended at 25,149.85, down 205 points, or 0.81 percent.
The decline was broad-based, with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices falling 0.65 percent and 0.70 percent, respectively.
Among sectoral indices, Nifty Auto and Nifty IT dropped nearly 2 percent each, while defensive sectors such as Pharma and FMCG gained more than half a percent.
The overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms fell to ₹456.5 lakh crore, from ₹460 lakh crore in the previous session — a decline of nearly ₹3.5 lakh crore in a single day.
A confluence of factors dragged equities lower on Friday. Here are five key reasons behind the selloff:
IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) reported its June-quarter results on Wednesday, disappointing market expectations and adding pressure to the IT sector. It marked the company’s third consecutive quarter of revenue decline.
TCS posted revenue of $7.42 billion, down 0.59 percent quarter-on-quarter and 1.12 percent year-on-year. This fell short of the $7.54 billion expected by 33 analysts polled by Bloomberg. It was also TCS’s weakest Q1 showing since the pandemic-hit June quarter of 2020, when revenue fell 7 percent sequentially.
The uninspiring start to the earnings season weighed heavily on sentiment, which had already turned fragile due to concerns over trade tariffs and stretched valuations.
US President Donald Trump ramped up trade tensions by announcing a 35 percent tariff on goods imported from Canada, effective August 1. He also suggested that baseline tariffs for other countries not receiving formal tariff notices could be raised to 15–20 percent from the current 10 percent.
The renewed tariff threats have dimmed hopes of an early resolution to the trade conflict, fuelling fears of higher global inflation and a potential economic slowdown.
With corporate earnings yet to show sustained momentum, analysts are flagging concerns about expensive valuations.
Shibani Kurian of Kotak Mahindra AMC, said returns may moderate in the near term due to elevated valuations. “Nifty is currently trading at a PE of nearly 22x FY26E EPS, with consensus estimating low double-digit earnings growth for FY26,” she said.
VK Vijayakumar of Geojit Financial Services, added that India is currently underperforming peers like South Korea, Germany, Japan, and MSCI Emerging Markets — largely due to valuation concerns.
Escalating trade tensions have led investors to de-risk their portfolios by shifting capital from equities to safer assets like gold and silver.
The MCX Gold August 5 contract rose nearly 1 percent to an intraday high of ₹97,548 per 10 grams. Meanwhile, the MCX Silver September 5 contract hit an all-time high of ₹1,11,552 per kg during Friday's session.
Technical indicators for the Nifty 50 also point to further weakness ahead.
Shrikant Chouhan of Kotak Securities, noted that the index has formed a bearish candle on the daily chart and a lower top on the intraday chart — both negative signals. He sees further downside below 25,330, with possible targets of 25,200–25,150 and even 25,050 if the slide continues.
Hardik Matalia of Choice Equity Broking said a decisive break below the 25,330–25,300 range could lead to deeper losses, pulling the index towards the 25,100–25,000 zone. On the upside, immediate resistance lies at 25,500, with a stronger hurdle near 25,600.
(By arrangement with livemint.com)
