Stock markets witnessed sharp selling on Friday, with the Sensex climbing over 1,200 points and the Nifty falling below the 23,700 mark. This came amid concerns about the US Federal Reserve’s cautious stance on rate cuts in 2025.
A Fed rate cut causes volatility
In the previous session, the Fed announced a reduction of 25 basis points but lowered its projections for 2025, predicting only two cuts instead of what was expected in September. This global market sentiment weakened, leading to a sell-off in all sectors.
Sector impact: IT and realty hit hard
The realty and IT sectors bore the brunt of the decline, causing market indices to decline. Stocks in the financial and metal sectors also saw heavy losses.
Big winners and losers
Among the Sensex stocks:
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Losers: Axis Bank, L&T, UltraTech Cement, ITC, JSW Steel, and Tata Steel opened significantly lower.
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Winners: NTPC, TCS, Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints, and Bharti Airtel showed resilience with modest gains.
IT stocks offer a silver lining
Indian IT majors such as TCS, Infosys, and Wipro gained up to 1 percent, boosted by Accenture’s strong Q1 results. The US-based IT giant beat profit and loss expectations, boosting sentiment in the sector.
Market view
The sharp correction shows investor caution amid mixed global signals. Analysts suggest that the IT sector may continue to see support, while volatility in other sectors may continue.