Indian equities slipped in morning trade on Monday, weighed down by weak global cues, sustained foreign investor selling and nervousness over a still-uncertain trade deal with the United States. By around 11 am, the Sensex hovered near 85,100, down roughly 170 points from Friday’s close, while the Nifty 50 was trading just below 25,985, giving up early-session levels but off its intraday lows.
Earlier in the day, the Sensex had fallen as low as 84,840.32, and the Nifty dropped to 25,904.75 in opening deals, mirroring losses across major Asian markets.
Indian benchmark indices remain under pressure from foreign institutional investors (FIIs), who sold equities worth Rs 1,114 crore on Friday, even as domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought nearly Rs 3,869 crore, cushioning the fall.
Market experts say the biggest overhang is the lack of progress on an India–US trade agreement, which they argue is hurting exports, widening the trade deficit and adding to rupee weakness.
The currency hit a fresh record low in early trade, with the rupee slipping to about 90.58 against the US dollar before stabilising around the 90.7 mark, extending its recent slide.
Across sectors, financials and rate-sensitive stocks were among the notable laggards through the morning as overseas funds trimmed positions in large banks and non-banking financial companies.
Mahindra and Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Kotak Bank, and PowerGrid were the worst performers in the Sensex at 11 am.
On the Nifty, broader indices like small-caps and mid-caps also traded in the red, though the declines were milder than in the frontline benchmarks by late morning.
Stock-specific moves continued to be driven by research calls and order flows. Energy and PSU names faced selling pressure after recent gains, while select industrial and capital goods stocks found support from fresh project announcements and order wins, helping limit the downside for the indices.
Global cues remained weak, with most major Asian indices trading lower as investors awaited key economic data from China and the US later this week and reassessed the outlook for global growth and interest rates. Brent crude, however, traded relatively steady around $61.43 per barrel, offering some relief on the inflation and input-cost front for India’s import-dependent economy.