Sensex, Nifty Extend Losses for Third Straight Session Amid IT and Banking Drag

Mumbai, Sep 23 — The benchmark indices continued to fall for the third consecutive day on Tuesday, as IT stocks and private banking stocks continued to feel selling pressure amid deepening foreign outflows. This has been a pattern over the past three trading days, following the announcement of a steep fee hike in US H-1B visa fees by US President Donald Trump.

Market Performance

The 30-share BSE Sensex slipped 57.87 points, or 0.07 per cent, to close at 82,102.10 after swinging between an intraday high of 82,370.38 and a low of 81,776.53 — a sharp fluctuation of nearly 594 points. The NSE Nifty 50 also ended weaker, shedding 32.85 points, or 0.13 per cent, to settle at 25,169.50.

Key Movers

Heavy selling in HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Trent, Tech Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, UltraTech Cement, and Asian Paints dragged the benchmarks lower. On the other hand, gains in Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Maruti Suzuki, and State Bank of India helped cushion deeper losses.

Sector Snapshot

Out of the sectors advancing, autos, metals and financial services were supported by optimism due to the festive season and recent GST cuts. FMCG and realty stocks were also under selling pressure, and broader markets underperformed, with both small and mid-cap stocks lagging.

Foreign Flows and Global Cues

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to pare exposure, selling equities worth ₹2,910.09 crore on Monday, as per exchange data. Across Asia, Shanghai and Hong Kong markets ended in the red, while Kospi closed higher. Japan remained shut for a holiday. European equities traded firm, and Wall Street closed higher overnight.

Currency and Commodities

The rupee slumped to a record low of 88.82 per US dollar in intraday trade, down 52 paise, pressured by sustained fund outflows and weak sentiment. Meanwhile, Brent crude edged up 0.45 percent to USD 66.87 per barrel, adding to macroeconomic concerns.

Previous Session Recap

On Monday, the Sensex had dropped 466.26 points (0.56 per cent) to 82,159.97, while the Nifty declined 124.70 points (0.49 per cent) to 25,202.35.

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