Sensex drops 200 points, Nifty tests 17,650

Indian stock markets fell on Wednesday, with IT stocks leading the decline due to weak sentiment after a lackluster start to the quarterly earnings season. The Nifty 50 dropped 0.16% to 17,632.50, while the S&P BSE Sensex lost 0.17% to 59,623.09. Of the 13 major sectoral indexes, nine declined, with IT stocks down over 1%. HCLTech and Infosys, which are set to report quarterly earnings soon, were among the top losers in the Nifty 50, falling nearly 2% each. “Investors have been nervous after the dismal fourth-quarter performance of IT companies which have reported their numbers so far,” said Prashanth Tapse, senior vice president (research) at Mehta Equities.

NewsOTG gathered that the Nifty 50 has lost over 1% so far this week, logging losses in each of the previous two sessions. On Monday, the benchmark formed a bearish engulfing pattern on the daily charts, suggesting a bearish bias for the near term. “The index has got an important near-term support at 17,500-17,550 zone and resistance at 17,800 levels,” said Vaishali Parekh, vice president for technical research at Prabhudas Lilladher. Markets are likely to stay volatile and choppy, with earnings the only major trigger until the U.S. Federal Reserve rate decision on May 3, two analysts said.
Indian shares slipped on Wednesday, dragged by IT stocks. High-weightage financials were little changed, while IT stocks fell over 1%. The Nifty 50 has lost over 1% so far this week, suggesting a bearish bias for the near term. Piramal Pharma Ltd climbed over 6% after the U.S. drug regulator closed an inspection of its Sellersville manufacturing facility.

On the individual stocks front, Piramal Pharma Ltd climbed over 6% after the U.S. drug regulator closed an inspection of its Sellersville manufacturing facility by issuing an Establishment Inspection Report. Meanwhile, TVS Motors rose over 2% after brokerage CLSA predicted the two-wheeler maker to see margin expansion in the near term and export recovery through the next two fiscal years. TVS Motors’ growth levers are intact, CLSA said, maintaining a “sell” on the stock citing stretched valuations. The market is expected to remain volatile, with investors eagerly anticipating upcoming earnings reports and the U.S. Federal Reserve rate decision on May 3.