Indian shares opened lower on Wednesday as a spike in retail inflation dampened hopes of a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) next month, adding to concerns over dull earnings and sustained foreign outflows.
The NSE Nifty 50 shed 0.27% to 23,819.75 as of 9:30 a.m. IST, while the BSE Sensex lost 0.1% to 78,620.6.
The benchmarks fell about 1% each in the previous session.
Foreign investors have sold $14 billion of Indian stocks over the last 32 sessions through Tuesday, as they move to China after Beijing’s stimulus measures.
This has triggered a 9.3% fall in the Nifty 50 from a record high hit on Sept. 27.
A dull domestic earnings season, the worst in more than four years, has also hurt investor sentiment.
Other Asian markets fell after Wall Street’s rally paused overnight, with US Treasury yields rising and the dollar hitting a more than six-month high, as investors weighed the impact of US President-elect Donald Trump’s likely policies.
Data released after market on Tuesday showed India’s retail inflation hit a 14-month high in October, dashing hopes of a rate cut in December.
Ten of the 13 major sectors declined at the open.
The broader, more domestically focused small- and mid-caps lost 0.7% and 0.5%, respectively.
Indian shares set to open higher after three-session drop
Fashion products retailer Nykaa rose 4% after posting a rise in second-quarter profit on firm demand for beauty products.
Construction company PNC Infra lost 4.6% after its quarterly profit nearly halved. Online food and grocery delivery platform Swiggy’s trading debut is in focus.
The company’s $1.4 billion initial public offering was subscribed 3.59 times last week.
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