Sensex dives over 750 points, Nifty trades below 17,650; Infosys, TechM & HCL Tech tank up to 12%

Indian equity benchmarks fell sharply in early deals on Monday. The domestic indices halted their nine-day winning run today as technology stocks dragged. The 30-share BSE Sensex slumped 762 points or 0.26 per cent to trade at 59,669, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 192 points or 1.08 per cent lower to trade at 17,636. Mid- and small-cap shares were down as Nifty Midcap 100 slipped 0.47 per cent and small-cap shed 0.50 per cent.

All three major US stock indexes closed lower on Friday. That said, Asian equities were trading on a mixed note today.

Back home, investors turned cautious due to lacklustre fourth-quarter (Q4) earnings from the top two IT firms, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys.

The worse-than-expected Q4 results from Infosys with only 4-7 per cent revenue growth for FY24 pulled down IT stocks, said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Six out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- were trading in the red. Sub-indexes Nifty IT was underperforming the NSE platform by falling as much as 6.25 per cent.

On the stock-specific front, Infosys was the top Nifty loser as the stock declined 12.06 per cent to trade at Rs 1,221.15. Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, TCS and Wipro fell up to 6.46 per cent.

In contrast, KIOCL Ltd jumped 11.85 per cent. Tanla PLatforms and HLE Glascoat gained up to 7.38 per cent.

The overall market breadth was weak as 1,261 shares were advancing while 1,679 were declining on BSE.

On the 30-share BSE index, Infosys, HDFC twins (HDFC and HDFC Bank), TCS, HCL Tech, TechM, L&T, Bharti Airtel, Wipro and ITC were among the top laggards.

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On the flip side, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, PowerGrid, UltraTech Cement and Hindustan Unilever (HUL) were trading in the green.

Foreign institutional investors extended their buying streak to the 10th session, adding Rs 222 crore worth of equities on Thursday.

Sensex had edged 38 points, or 0.06 per cent, higher to settle at 60,431 on Thursday, while Nifty had closed 16 points, or 0.09 per cent, up at 17,828. The domestic indices were closed on Friday to mark the birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar

Nifty outlook

"Prepare for volatility if unable to clear 17,976, or if slippages extend beyond 17,708. But, there is nothing yet to suggest an outright reversal, and the upside trajectory may be expected to be reclaimed in due course, as long as 17,500 holds during consolidation," Anand James - Chief Market Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

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