Indian share benchmarks slip on US tariff, foreign outflow woes

BENGALURU: India’s equity benchmarks fell on Wednesday, marking the seventh daily loss in eight sessions, as concerns over U.S. tariffs and foreign outflows overpowered a rally in metal and bank shares.

The Nifty 50 fell 0.26% to 25,665.6 and the Sensex shed 0.29% to 83,382.71. The indexes have lost 2.5% and 2.8%, respectively, over eight sessions. Indian markets will be closed on Thursday for a local holiday.

Nine of the 16 major sectors logged losses on the day. The broader small-caps and mid-caps added 0.7% and 0.3%.

Uncertainty over the timeline for a trade deal between India and the U.S. has been weighing on investor sentiment. While the U.S. levies tariffs of up to 50% on Indian goods, President Donald Trump has threatened to impose an additional 25% tariffs on countries trading with Iran.

Globally, geopolitical concerns have intensified after the death toll from unrest in Iran climbed to 2,600 amid fears of a further escalation of threats of U.S. intervention.

“Geopolitical concerns have led to an increase in business uncertainty and volatility, which is never relished by markets.

A sustained tariff row with the U.S. and related news flows are disturbing domestic market momentum,“ said Amnish Aggarwal, director of institutional research at PL Capital.

Foreign portfolio investors have net sold Indian shares worth about $2 billion in January after a record $19 billion outflow in 2025.

Metal index advanced 2.7%, as prices of base metals rose on global supply concerns and mounting geopolitical risks.

State-owned banks jumped 2.1%, led by a 7.9% rise in Union Bank of India and a 2.2% jump in Indian Overseas Bank, both of which reported higher

profits.

Top private lender HDFC Bank and No. 1 IT firm Tata Consultancy Services lost 1.3% and 2.3%, respectively, dragging the benchmarks.

Tata Elxsi dropped 5% on decline in quarterly profit.