Sensex, Nifty snap 5-day run as IT selloff bites

Markets open lower, rally pauses

Indian equity benchmarks opened in the red on Friday, bringing an end to the Sensex and Nifty’s five-session winning streak. At the opening bell, both indices were down around 0.8%, reflecting a quick shift from risk-on sentiment to caution.

The Nifty opened at 23,991 and the Sensex at 76,852. The early softness came as initial optimism linked to the US-Iran peace deal faded, while investors tracked global uncertainty, crude oil movements, and the US Federal Reserve’s stance on interest rates.

Closing snapshot: benchmarks finish sharply lower

By the close, the market’s losses were led by a steep sell-off in information technology stocks, which outweighed pockets of strength in healthcare and pharma. The rally of the previous week also triggered profit booking, adding to the pressure.

The S&P BSE Sensex fell 607.08 points, or 0.78%, to close at 76,802.90. The NSE Nifty 50 declined 154.90 points, or 0.64%, to settle at 24,013.10, holding just above the 24,000 level.

What broke the five-session winning streak

Friday’s decline came after a strong run-up over the prior five sessions. Over that stretch, the Sensex had risen 4.85% and the Nifty gained 4.35%, supported by improving sentiment and supportive macro factors mentioned in market coverage, including lower crude prices.

But by Friday, investors turned cautious again due to a mix of global cues and sector-specific triggers. Continued foreign institutional investor (FII) selling, weak global signals, and rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East were cited as additional reasons for the risk-off tone.

IT stocks take the biggest hit after Accenture guidance cut

The sharpest pressure came from technology shares after global IT major Accenture trimmed its revenue growth guidance and flagged weaker demand visibility. Market participants linked the move to concerns over global discretionary tech spending, a key demand driver for Indian IT services.

Accenture lowered its constant-currency revenue growth guidance to 3% to 4% from 3% to 5%. Excluding the impact of its US federal business, it now expects growth of 4% to 5%, compared with the earlier 4% to 6% range. Accenture shares fell over 14% on Thursday, adding to the negative sentiment.

The Nifty IT index ended down 3.65% at 27,426.85, after paring a substantial part of steeper intraday losses. During the session, the index fell as much as 6.02% to 26,752.85, and separate market updates also reported an intraday fall of 6.4% to 26,634.50, described as its lowest level since April 21, 2023.

Stock-wise action: Infosys leads declines

IT heavyweights were among the biggest drags on the benchmarks. Infosys led the losses, falling 6.50%.

Other declines across large-cap IT names included LTIMindtree (-3.95%), TCS (-3.06%), Mphasis (-2.94%), Tech Mahindra (-2.33%), HCLTech (-2.23%), Persistent Systems (-2.09%), Wipro (-1.28%), and Coforge (-1.01%).

Defensive pockets hold up: healthcare and pharma

While frontline IT stocks weighed on indices, healthcare and pharma names were cited as bucking the broader weakness. The sectoral resilience helped limit the overall drawdown, even as IT remained the clear laggard among key segments.

The split performance highlighted a familiar pattern during uncertain sessions: investors lean toward defensives while cutting exposure to economically sensitive or globally linked sectors.

Intraday swings: a partial recovery off lows

Markets remained under pressure for most of the day, but headlines also pointed to a partial recovery from intraday lows. One update noted that the Sensex rose about 350 points from the day’s low, while the Nifty stayed above 24,000 by the close.

Earlier in the session, the Sensex was reported down 730.22 points (0.94%) at 76,679.76 after touching a low of 76,578.08, while the Nifty fell 198.70 points (0.82%) to 23,969.30. Even with the bounce, the close still reflected broad risk aversion.

Global cues in focus: Fed stance, crude, and geopolitics

Investor caution was linked to multiple external factors. Coverage pointed to the US Federal Reserve’s cautious stance on interest rates, movements in crude oil prices, and renewed geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East.

The fading of initial optimism over the US-Iran peace deal was also flagged as a reason for weaker risk appetite. Combined with concerns about global growth and IT demand visibility, the macro backdrop supported profit booking after the recent rise.

Key data table: indices, sector moves, and prior rally

Market impact: what changed for investors

The day’s move reinforced how quickly sector leadership can shift when global cues hit a key index-heavy segment. With IT stocks accounting for a meaningful weight in the benchmarks, heavy selling in top names translated into a visible drag on the Sensex and Nifty.

The session also showed that even when some supportive factors are present, a guidance-driven repricing in a globally sensitive sector can dominate tape action. Profit booking after a five-day rally amplified the reaction, particularly when combined with ongoing FII selling mentioned in market reports.

Analysis: why Accenture’s outlook matters for Indian IT

Accenture’s guidance cut was treated as a read-through for broader enterprise tech spending because it reflects client decision-making in major markets. Indian IT firms often depend on similar global discretionary project pipelines, so weaker demand visibility at a large global peer can trigger a fast reassessment of near-term expectations.

Shashwat Singh, fundamental analyst at Bajaj Broking, said the sell-off was a “direct reflex reaction” to Accenture trimming its full-year outlook, adding that it signalled clients remain cautious about technology spending. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, also pointed to the guidance cut as a trigger, noting it led to selling pressure in Indian IT majors’ ADRs.

Conclusion: rally pauses, IT remains the key monitor

Friday’s decline ended a strong five-session winning streak for Indian benchmarks, with the Sensex closing down 0.78% and the Nifty down 0.64%. The decisive factor was sharp selling in IT shares after Accenture cut revenue growth guidance and highlighted weak demand visibility.

In the near term, market attention is likely to remain on global risk cues, crude oil moves, and commentary that shapes expectations on interest rates and technology spending, alongside the next round of updates from major IT companies.