Indian equities closed sharply lower on Monday, mirroring Friday’s selloff on Wall Street and weighed down by rising macroeconomic risks at home. The S&P BSE Sensex declined 0.6% to 77,709, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped 0.4% to 24,239.
Banks led the downturn, pressured by higher credit costs and renewed capital outflows amid fresh weakness in the rupee. Another session of gains in global oil prices raised expectations of further outflows, as energy importers settle more transactions in US dollars, reducing foreign investors’ appetite for Indian equities.
Kotak Mahindra Bank fell 2.1%, while Axis Bank and HDFC Bank each dropped more than 5% after their respective holding companies reported June-quarter results.
Sentiment was also hit by a renewed selloff in US technology shares, which spilled over into Mumbai given Indian IT firms’ significant exposure to North American clients. TCS and Infosys both ended the session 0.6% lower.
