Indian Share Market Today: Sensex Falls Over 250 Points, Nifty Drops 64 Points as IT Stocks Gain
The Indian stock market traded lower in early dealings on Friday, October 16, as selling pressure and profit-booking following recent gains weighed on benchmark indices. Mixed signals from global markets also influenced trading. The BSE Sensex fell more than 250 points, while the NSE Nifty 50 declined by over 60 points.
Despite the broader market decline, select information technology and telecommunications stocks advanced. Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Bharti Airtel traded higher during the session.
The BSE Sensex fell 250 points, or approximately 0.34%, to 74,064.96 in early trade on Friday. The NSE Nifty 50 declined by 64.10 points, or 0.28%, to 23,933.25.
Market breadth remained mixed. A total of 1,119 stocks advanced, while 1,076 declined and 183 remained unchanged during early trading. The figures indicated that buying interest persisted in select stocks despite the selling pressure across the broader market.
The Nifty IT index rose 1.54% to 31,193.90, leading gains among the sectoral indices. The Services index advanced 0.50%, while the Nifty PSU Bank index gained 0.11%.
Most other sectoral indices traded lower. The Nifty Realty index declined 0.73%, while the FMCG and Energy indices fell 0.63% and 0.61%, respectively. The Nifty Bank index dropped 0.26%, the Infrastructure index declined 0.29%, and the Pharma index fell 0.16%.
IT stocks accounted for several of the leading gainers in early trade. Tech Mahindra shares rose 5.15%, while Infosys gained 3.59%. TCS advanced 3.10%, and HCL Technologies climbed 1.76%.
Bharti Airtel shares traded 1.06% higher. JSW Steel gained 0.21%, Titan advanced 0.11%, and HDFC Bank edged up 0.10%. Hindalco also traded in positive territory.
Several major stocks traded lower amid selling pressure. BSE Limited declined 2.61%, while HDFC Life Insurance fell 2.28%. Jio Financial Services dropped 1.83%, and Shriram Finance declined 1.44%.
Reliance Industries fell 1.43%, while Bajaj Finserv lost 1.36%. Grasim Industries declined 1.31%, Tata Consumer Products fell 1.29%, Hindustan Unilever dropped 1.11%, and Trent declined 1.05%. SBI Life Insurance also remained under pressure.
