Sensex, Nifty Slip Again as IT Stocks Drag

Synopsis

The Dow Jones India Stock Exchange Indexes (Sensex) and the Nifty 50 index on the Indian stock exchange markets were down for the second straight session on August 17, 2026, amid lagging performances from information technology and consumer goods shares. Crude oil prices hovered near $89 a barrel, reflecting unabated geopolitical worries in West Asia, sent a note of caution to investors throughout the day amid moderate gains in other mid-cap and small-cap stocks.

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Benchmarks: Extend Losses for 2nd session

Indian bourses ended down Monday after neither of the key indices managed to stem losses at the opening trade. The Sensex fell 281.09 points, or 0.36 per cent, to 77,728.16, while the Nifty settled 78.35 points, or 0.32 per cent, lower at 24,287.65. The indices fell for the second consecutive session as IT and FMCG stocks led across the board losses, with the Nifty IT index shedding of nearly 2%.

The session had started on a quiet tone, along global weak cues. The Sensex began the day down 116.33 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 77,892.92, while the Nifty opened 22.55 points lower at 24,343.45, against Friday's close of 78,009.25 and 24,366, respectively.

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Losses continued to increase as the morning wore on. By mid-morning, the Sensex had dipped nearly 370 points to around 77,640 while the Nifty fell short of the 24,300 level to near 24,278, with market breadth remaining mixed with more stocks down than up.

To what extent have you experienced this?

There were two well-known pressures that were active throughout the trading day. Sentiment among investors stayed under pressure as talks between the United States and Iran over a possible resolution to their nuclear standoff went on to encounter obstacles, keeping risk appetite low among investors.

Compounding this, Brent crude was being offered at $88-89 per barrel amidst concerns of lower shipping activity through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, while higher crude prices would directly affect the import bill of the country and the trajectory of inflation in the country given the high dependence on energy imports.

According to Osho Krishan, Chief Manager, Technical & Derivative Research at Angel One, "The Nifty 50 has recovered from a 38.20 per cent pullback from its recent rally and it has formed the breakout neckline of a sloping trendline, hence the sell-off is a healthy pullback and not a reversal.

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Overall the market is holding up well

The market as a whole was slightly better, as the headline indices were not. The Nifty Midcap index and Nifty Small cap index closed 0.05 per cent and 0.36 per cent up respectively, indicating that the buying activity was selective in as far as mid and small cap stocks were concerned.

Regional cues were not consistently negative. Asian stocks closed mixed on Monday with Japan's Nikkei 225 rising 201.20 points, or 0.29 per cent, at 68,915, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 409.15 points, or 1.60 per cent, despite a decline in South Korea's Kospi and Shanghai's SSE Composite index, which fell 33.01 points and 0.84 per cent, respectively.

The institutional flows and the way forward

The pullback was not as significant as it might have been because of foreign and domestic institutional activity. On Thursday, August 14, 2026, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers of equity shares worth Rs 508.12 crore, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) continued to be net buyers, buying equity shares worth Rs 356.40 crore.

The index is now being closely monitored by technical analysts at key support levels as it tests its recent range. If the index continues to fall it could put on a breather to a 50 per cent Fibonacci retracement at 24,200-24,150, making the technical picture more bearish. On the other hand, the Nifty 50's immediate support is at 24,500 for the sessions to come.

Crude prices have been high to date, with the diplomacy over West Asia yet to deliver a breakthrough, and market participants will be likely looking to both the global energy markets and any further domestic earnings for direction.