Indian shares end lower as higher oil prices, foreign outflows dent appetite

Indian shares closed lower on Wednesday as firmer oil prices and sustained foreign outflows weighed on risk sentiment after a rebound in the previous session, while investors assessed earnings and awaited key US inflation data.

The Nifty 50 fell 0.44% to 22,622.70, while the BSE Sensex dipped 0.34% to 72,781.89.

Eight of the 16 major sectors logged losses. The broader small-caps and mid-caps fell 0.3% and 0.1%, respectively.

The Nifty and Sensex climbed about 1.6% each on Tuesday, led by information technology stocks after HCLTech’s quarterly profit beat expectations.

IT index, which gained 5.2% in the previous session, added 1.1% on the day.

Oil prices rose to $106a barrel after two vessels were struck in the Strait of Hormuz, heightening supply concerns, while Iranian officials said they were deploying new tactics to target ships.

“Going forward, the direction of markets will depend on a combination of global risk appetite, currency movements, crude oil prices and corporate earnings momentum,” Vinit Bolinjkar, head of research at Ventura said, adding that markets may remain highly volatile and selective in the near term.

Investors now await a key US inflation data due later in the day for clues on the Federal Reserve’s rate trajectory.

Higher US rates tend to reduce the appeal of emerging markets such as India to overseas investors.

Foreign portfolio investors extended their selling streak to 13 sessions on Tuesday, taking year-to-date outflows to a record $32.52 billion.

“While domestic institutional participation remains the source of market resilience, that alone may not be sufficient to sustain a broad-based rally if foreign outflows persist,” Ventura’s Bolinjkar said.

Among individual stocks, Tata Elxsi climbed 5.7% after the engineering research and development firm posted higher quarterly profit.

Bank of Baroda fell 4% after UAE-based businessman BR Shetty, founder of NMC Healthcare, filed a $15 billion lawsuit against the state-owned lender and 25 other defendants in the Bombay High Court.