Indian equity markets ended Tuesday’s session on a sharply negative note, with selling pressure intensifying through the day and pulling the benchmark indices decisively lower by the close. The BSE Sensex slumped by over a thousand points to finish near the 83,000 mark, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped below the 25,450 level, reflecting a broad-based risk-off mood across Dalal Street. The decline erased a sizeable portion of recent gains and underscored the fragility of investor sentiment amid mounting global and sector-specific concerns.
Technology stocks were at the centre of the sell-off and acted as the biggest drag on the benchmarks. Heavyweight IT names saw steep declines, with several stocks falling between five and six percent, as investors reassessed growth prospects for the sector. Persistent worries around the pace of global tech spending, combined with growing debate on how rapidly artificial intelligence could disrupt traditional IT services models, weighed heavily on valuations. The sharp fall in the IT index amplified losses across the broader market and kept buying interest subdued for most of the session.
"Escalating global macro uncertainty—particularly around US trade and tariff developments—along with persistent concerns over AI-led disruption in the global technology space, weighed on overall risk appetite and prompted defensive positioning across most sectors," says senior market anlalyst and brokerage Enrich Money's chief executive officer R Ponmudi.
He added that the IT sector bore the brunt of the selling pressure, with stocks declining sharply in line with weakness in global technology counters.
"Intensifying concerns that rapid AI advancements could disrupt traditional business models and valuation frameworks further dampened sentiment, triggering broad-based profit booking in technology names," Ponmudi said.
Beyond technology, weakness was visible across other key sectors as well. Select banking and financial stocks gave up early gains, while capital goods, metals and oil and gas counters also traded under pressure, pointing to a cautious stance among both domestic and foreign investors. Market breadth remained decisively negative, with declines outpacing advances by a wide margin, indicating that selling was not confined to a single pocket but spread across large, mid and small-cap segments.
Global cues played a significant role in shaping the day’s market action. Heightened uncertainty around international trade dynamics, combined with uneven signals from overseas equity markets, dampened risk appetite. Investors appeared wary of taking fresh positions ahead of clearer direction on global growth and policy developments, leading to profit-taking in stocks that had rallied strongly in recent weeks.
The cautious tone in equities was mirrored in the currency market, with the rupee ending slightly weaker against the dollar. While sharp moves were contained, the modest depreciation reflected capital market volatility and persistent demand for safe-haven assets, reinforcing the interconnected nature of global financial markets.
Overall, the sharp decline on Tuesday marked a clear shift in market tone, breaking the tentative optimism seen earlier. The session highlighted how quickly sentiment can turn amid external headwinds and sectoral anxieties, with investors now likely to remain selective and watchful in the near term, tracking global developments and corporate earnings cues for direction.