Bank stocks drag Sensex 100 pts lower, Nifty below 25,100
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Indian benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty opened marginally lower on Friday, weighed down by losses in Axis Bank Bharti Airtel , and Kotak Bank . This came even as global cues remained positive, with better-than-expected U.S. labour and retail sales data easing some concerns over economic weakness.At around 9:20 am, the BSE Sensex was down 100 points, or 0.12%, at 82,159, while the Nifty50 slipped 24 points, or 0.10%, to trade at 25,086.Asian stocks rose on Friday, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gaining 0.7%, following record closing highs in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq overnight.On Thursday, data showed that U.S. retail sales rebounded in June after two months of decline, while jobless claims came in lower than expected. The data signalled resilience in the U.S. economy and lifted investor sentiment globally.Among Sensex constituents, Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, Kotak Mahindra Bank Eternal , and Sun Pharma opened in the red, while M&M, Tata Steel Power Grid , L&T, and Infosys saw early gains.Axis Bank shares fell 6.4% at the open after the private lender reported a 4% year-on-year decline in standalone net profit to Rs 5,806 crore for Q1FY26, compared to Rs 6,035 crore in the same quarter last year.On the sectoral front, Nifty Financial Services, FMCG, Pharma, and Private Bank indices declined between 0.2% and 1.1%. In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 edged up 0.1%, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 posted marginal gains."In July, so far, India has been underperforming most markets, with a dip of 1.6% in Nifty. A significant contributor to the decline is the selling by FIIs. There is a clear pattern in FII activity this year so far. They were sellers in the first three months. For the next three months, they turned buyers. And in the seventh month, the trends so far indicate further selling unless some positive news reverse the downtrend in the market," said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited."Along with selling in the cash market FIIs have been increasing short positions in the derivatives market too, which reflect a bearish outlook. Elevated valuations in India and cheaper valuations in other markets will continue to influence FII activity," Vijayakumar added.Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities, said, "Technically, Nifty remains bullish above 25,470, with support at 25,000 and resistance at 26,000; options data suggests a 24,500–26,500 range."Asian shares tracked Wall Street higher on Friday as still-strong U.S. economic data and robust corporate earnings offset tariff worries, while the yen headed toward a second successive week of loss ahead of Japan's upper house election.Overnight, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq again closed at record highs as U.S. data, including retail sales and jobless claims, beat forecasts, indicating a modest improvement in the economy that should give the Federal Reserve time to gauge the inflation impact from higher U.S. tariffs.On Friday, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.8% to its highest since late 2021, bringing the weekly gain to 1.7%. Chinese blue-chips rose 0.3% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index gained 1.2%.Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) remained net sellers for the second consecutive session on July 17, offloading equities worth Rs 3,694 crore. Meanwhile, Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) continued their buying spree for the ninth straight session, purchasing equities worth Rs 2,820 crore.
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