Sensex declines 455 points on foreign fund outflows, trade-related concerns

The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 455.35 points to 83,120.89 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty tanked 135.35 points to 25,547.95.

From the 30-Sensex firms, Bharat Electronics, Larsen and Toubro, Eternal, Power Grid, Adani Ports, Infosys, Reliance Industries and Bajaj Finance were among the biggest laggards.

However, Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints, Axis Bank and State Bank of India were among the gainers.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth ₹3,769.31 crore on Friday (January 9), while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth ₹5,595.84 crore, according to exchange data.

“Indian equity markets begin the week on a cautious footing as risk appetite remains restrained amid lingering global uncertainty, continued FII outflows, and geopolitical overhangs. Recent profit-booking across sectors has added to near-term pressure, keeping sentiment defensive,” Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

In the past five trading days, the BSE benchmark declined 2,185.77 points or 2.54%, and the Nifty tumbled 645.25 points or 2.45%.

In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi index, Shanghai’s SSE Composite index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded higher.

U.S. markets ended in positive territory on Friday.

“The market has turned distinctly weak, weighed down by a series of India-specific and global geopolitical events. Geopolitical developments in Venezuela, the crisis in Iran and Trump’s threats regarding Greenland are also being viewed by the markets with concern,” V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments, said.