Sensex Snaps Winning Streak as IT Selloff and Heavyweights Drag Markets

The Indian equity markets faced a sharp reversal on Friday as the BSE Sensex and Nifty50 ended a five-session winning streak. A combination of a massive selloff in technology stocks and weakness in heavyweights like HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries pushed the indices lower despite Nifty50 managing to stay above the 24,000 mark.

IT Sector Crashes Following Accenture's Weak Guidance

The primary driver behind the market decline was a heavy selloff in the technology sector. The Nifty IT index plummeted by over 6%, hitting its lowest level since April 2023. This contagion was triggered by a sharp 11% drop in Accenture's stock on Wall Street, where the consulting giant revised its FY26 revenue growth forecast downward to 3-4% from its previous guidance.

This revision has sparked fears among Indian investors that global corporate spending on discretionary IT consulting and digital transformation is slowing down. Leading Indian IT firms saw significant losses:

  • Infosys: The biggest loser, sliding nearly 9% (and 6.69% at close).
  • TCS: Dropped 3.53%.
  • HCLTech: Declined 2.74%.
  • Tech Mahindra: Ended 2.45% lower.

Heavyweights HDFC Bank and Reliance Weigh on Indices

While IT stocks led the charge, the broader indices were further dragged down by index heavyweights. The BSE Sensex fell by 607.08 points, or 0.78%, to settle at 76,802.90, with intraday volatility seeing it drop as much as 940 points.

HDFC Bank shares fell 2.25% to close at Rs 781. The decline was largely attributed to the stock turning ex-dividend for a final dividend of Rs 13 per share. Additionally, the bank noted that the RBI has approved a three-month tenure extension for Keki Mistry as interim part-time chairman.

Reliance Industries (RIL) also contributed to the downward pressure, closing at Rs 1,311.50, down 1.25%. The decline comes at a pivotal moment for the conglomerate, as Chairman Mukesh Ambani recently announced the upcoming filing of the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) for the Reliance Jio Platforms IPO with SEBI.

Market Sentiment Impacted by Geopolitical Concerns

Selain kelemahan sektoral, kekhawatiran geopolitik baru menambah lapisan kewaspadaan terhadap sentimen perdagangan. Pembalikan arah pasar yang tiba-tiba ini mengikuti periode yang sangat bullish; selama lima hari perdagangan sebelumnya, Sensex telah naik 4,84% (3.577,43 poin) dan Nifty telah melonjak 4,34% (1.006,4 poin). Aksi jual pada hari Jumat ini berfungsi sebagai koreksi signifikan setelah reli cepat tersebut, mencerminkan sensitivitas investor terhadap sinyal makroekonomi global maupun pergerakan saham-saham unggulan domestik.

Poin-Poin Penting

  • Volatilitas Sektor IT: Kekhawatiran global atas pengurangan pengeluaran IT, yang dipicu oleh penurunan prospek pertumbuhan Accenture, menyebabkan indeks Nifty IT menyentuh level terlemahnya dalam lebih dari tiga tahun.
  • Beban Saham Unggulan: Penurunan pasar diperparah oleh kerugian pada HDFC Bank (akibat penyesuaian ex-dividend) dan Reliance Industries.
  • Akhir dari Reli: Aksi jual tersebut memutus tren kenaikan selama lima hari, menandai pembalikan arah yang tajam setelah Sensex naik hampir 5% pada minggu sebelumnya.