FX.co ★ India Stocks Fall on Tech Weakness

The BSE Sensex dropped 400 points, or 0.5%, to 83,836 in Thursday’s morning trade, extending losses into a second consecutive session, led primarily by weakness in the technology sector. Sentiment was cautious after stronger-than-expected US jobs data for January tempered expectations of imminent Federal Reserve rate cuts. Investors were also wary ahead of the release of domestic January inflation figures later in the day. Consensus forecasts point to inflation quickening to 2.4%, the highest level since last May, driven largely by higher food prices, but still comfortably within the RBI’s 2–6% target band. Market participants were additionally positioning for a fresh batch of corporate earnings, including results from Hindustan Unilever. Tech stocks slid 4.1%, mirroring an overnight selloff in US software names, with Infosys tumbling 4.9%, Tata Consultancy Services sinking 4.3%, and HCL Technologies also down 4.3%. Elsewhere, Vodafone declined 3.2% after JPMorgan downgraded the stock and projected a 20% downside potential.