Sensex Down 188 Pts, Nifty Slips: Tata Sons Chairman Exit, Crude Prices Weigh on Market

Indian equities ended lower for the second straight session on Wednesday as elevated crude oil prices, global uncertainty and selling in Tata Group stocks weighed on investor sentiment. The benchmark BSE Sensex fell 187.90 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 77,966.35, while the NSE Nifty declined 35.75 points, or 0.15 per cent, to 24,435.95.

The market remained volatile through the session. The Sensex plunged as much as 656.32 points to 77,497.93 in morning trade before recovering a substantial portion of its losses by the close. Twenty-one Sensex constituents ended in the red, while eight gained and one remained unchanged.

A major drag on the benchmark was TCS, which fell 3.71 per cent after Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran announced that he would not seek reappointment when his current term ends on February 20, 2027. Chandrasekaran, 63, has spent four decades with the Tata Group and served as TCS chief executive from 2009 to 2017.

Other major laggards included Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro, Eternal and Infosys. In contrast, State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel, UltraTech Cement and Power Grid were among the gainers.

The immediate concern for investors remained crude oil, with Brent crude trading at $88.76 a barrel, after prices moved closer to the psychologically important $90 mark. Analysts said higher energy costs could add to inflationary pressures and reinforce caution ahead of key inflation data from India and the US.

Market sentiment was also affected by continuing uncertainty over US-Iran negotiations and shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, keeping global energy markets on edge.

The broader market was comparatively resilient, with the BSE MidCap Select index falling 0.17 per cent and the SmallCap Select index ending almost flat. Sectorally, Hospitals led declines with a 2.87 per cent fall, followed by Focused IT, IT, FMCG and Realty. Telecommunication and PSU Bank stocks bucked the trend, rising 1.89 per cent and 1.86 per cent, respectively.

Asian markets offered some support, with South Korea's KOSPI surging 3.68 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei and Shanghai's SSE Composite also closed higher. European markets were largely positive. Foreign Institutional Investors bought equities worth Rs 258.55 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.