BENGALURU: Indian shares fell on Thursday, tracking a selloff in global stocks on worries over escalating tensions in the Middle East, while earnings-driven gains in key Nifty 50 constituents limited the losses.
The NSE Nifty 50 index settled 0.24% lower at 19,624.70, and the S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.38% to 65,629.24. Both the benchmarks lost 0.81% each during the session.
Metals shed 0.88% and was the top sectoral loser. High weightage banks settled 0.31% lower, after losing 0.75% in intraday trade.
A 2.11% rise in private lender IndusInd Bank on strong earnings helped the bank index trim losses.
Auto index added 0.50%, supported by a 6.72% jump in Bajaj Auto to a record high, after beating profit estimates in second quarter.
Similarly, Nestle India hit a record high on strong quarterly results, driving the consumer index 0.14% higher.
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Global stocks fell on fears of Israel-Hamas military clashes engulfing the region, while a jump in U.S. Treasury yields to a 16-year high added to the risk aversion.
“This unexpected spike in (U.S. Treasury) yields will take its toll on equity markets,” said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
Analysts said that elevated U.S. yields could trigger further foreign portfolio investor (FPI) selling in Indian equities. FPIs have been net sellers of Indian shares since the beginning of September.
Wipro fell nearly 3% and was the top Nifty 50 loser after it flagged a further drop in revenue in the ongoing quarter, following a surprise fall in second quarter.
But a rise in other IT stocks like LTIMindtree, Persistent Systems and Coforge on strong earnings helped trim losses in the information technology index.
On the flip side, Ultratech Cement jumped 2.90% after reporting a year-on-year rise in second-quarter net profit.
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