Stock Market: Sensex Falls 346 Points; Nifty Around 19,700. HCL Sheds 3 Per Cent; IT, Metals Drag

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, Infosys declined the most, 2.69 per cent. Axis Bank, SBI, Wipro, TechM, ICICI Bank were among the other losers

In the broader market, the BSE Midcap index was up 0.1 per cent, while the Smallcap index added 0.2 per cent. ( Image Source :Getty )

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Friday opened with steep losses Infosys and HCL Technologies lowered growth forecast for FY24. At 9.45 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 346 points to 66,026. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 was trading at 19,709, down 84 points.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Infosys declined the most, 2.69 per cent. Axis Bank, SBI, Wipro, TechM, ICICI Bank were among the other losers. Infosys has lowered its FY24 growth guidance. On the flip side, HCL, IndusInd Bank, Nestle, TCS, Maruti, Titan emerged early gainers.

In the broader market, the BSE Midcap index was up 0.1 per cent, while the Smallcap index added 0.2 per cent.

Sectorwise, IT, metals, power, and banks are trading in the red, while buying is seen in the oil & gas and realty index.

Overnight, the US indices - Dow Jones, Nasdaq, the S&P 500 declined over 0.5 per cent each after inflation in the US rose slightly more than expected at 0.4 per cent on a month-on-month basis.

In the previous session on Thursday, the S&P BSE Sensex closed the session at 66,408, down 65 points, while the NSE Nifty50 shut shop at 19,794, down 17 points.

"Expect gap down opening in the domestic markets after Infosys announced lower than expected FY24 earning guidance and September inflation in the US was marginally above estimates," Vikas Jain, Senior Analyst at Reliance Securities, said in a pre-market open note.

Key Asian indices were in the red and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped more than 2 per cent.

US and European markets closed in the negative territory on Thursday amid inflation numbers coming in slightly higher than expected in the US. Sensex and Nifty too had declined.

Rising US 10-year bond yield as well as fall in Asian markets impacted the domestic equities, he added.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers on Thursday as they sold shares worth Rs 1,862.57 crore, according to data available with BSE.

Meanwhile, the rupee traded on a flat note at 83.24 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday as an upward trend in crude oil prices dented investor sentiment despite positive domestic macroeconomic data. Forex analysts said the Indian currency continued to stay under pressure due to unabated foreign fund outflow amid negative equity markets across Asia.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 83.25 and stayed in the narrow range of 83.23 to 83.25 against the greenback. It later turned flat at Thursday's closing level of 83.24 against the dollar. The rupee had settled 7 paise higher on Wednesday, a day after gaining 3 paise against the American currency.