A weak start marked the opening bell on Dalal Street on Monday, as investor anxiety over lofty valuations and lacklustre corporate earnings dragged benchmark indices into negative territory.
The BSE Sensex fell by 330 points at the opening session, slipping to 82,392.04, while the Nifty 50 opened lower by 26 points at 25,123.65. Analysts pointed to a confluence of premium valuations, tepid Q1 earnings, and jittery global cues for the retreat.
Ajay Bagga, banking and market expert, told ANI, “Indian markets have a problem of premium valuations with earnings yet to pick up meaningfully and a weak global sentiment impacting FPI inflows.”
He added that large-scale offloading by promoters and private equity funds, coupled with an active IPO pipeline, was draining liquidity from the secondary market. “When promoters are selling their crown jewels, markets should be more circumspect and lowering valuations,” he warned. “Instead, we are seeing a continued 'buy all dips' strategy by domestic retail investors, who are holding up the markets and providing easy exits to departing insiders in a counterintuitive move.”
Overseas headwinds have compounded domestic pressures. Markets in the United States closed the week in the red, weighed down by fresh tariff announcements from the Trump administration and tensions between the White House and the Federal Reserve under Jerome Powell.
Also read: Q1 earnings, trade talks, inflation data to drive stock markets
Investors are now eyeing key US earnings announcements and inflation data due this week, which could reflect the early fallout of renewed trade barriers.
Closer to home, the broader Indian market remained mixed. The Nifty Midcap 50 and Nifty Smallcap 1000 indices were marginally in the green, but major sectoral indices trended lower. Nifty IT, in particular, shed more than 1 per cent, mirroring global tech-sector weakness.
Akshay Chinchalkar, head of research at Axis Securities, attributed Friday’s 205-point fall in Nifty to technical indicators. “Technically speaking, Friday’s candle had a long upper shadow and a close near the lows, and that's weak behaviour,” he said.
Key Q1 earnings from firms including HCL Technologies, Tata Technologies, Ola Electric, and Tejas Networks are scheduled for release today. The market will also watch out for numbers from Benares Hotels, Kesoram Industries, and Royal India Corporation.
Analysts are watching support levels closely. “The area between 25,000 and 25,127 is now a critical support. Bulls must defend this and push the index above 25,340 to reverse the ongoing dip,” said Chinchalkar.
Sunil Gurjar, SEBI-registered analyst and founder of Alphamojo Financial Services, echoed the concern, citing weak earnings, pressure on tech stocks, and valuation risks as key triggers for the slide. “The markets are currently experiencing a significant sell-off,” he said. “If the index falls below 25,300 and does not find support at 24,650, it could sharply decline to 23,855.”
Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.25 per cent, while Taiwan’s weighted index dropped 0.74 per cent. On the other hand, South Korea’s KOSPI and Singapore’s Straits Times gained modestly.
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