Sensex falls over 100 pts, Nifty below 24,800; IT, banking stocks drag on Fed cues

Indian benchmark equity indices opened lower for the third straight session on Thursday, weighed down by losses in IT and banking stocks amid hawkish signals from the US Federal Reserve and ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

The BSE Sensex was down 153 points, or 0.19%, at 81,287, while the Nifty50 slipped 56 points, or 0.23%, to 24,754 around 9:19 am.

Broader Asian markets also traded in the red, with the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index falling 0.8%. On Wall Street, US equities closed mostly flat after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged but signalled a more gradual pace of rate cuts—now projecting only two reductions by the end of the year.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned that goods inflation could rise over the summer, partly due to tariffs associated with US President Donald Trump’s trade stance.

The prospect of a slower monetary easing cycle has dampened foreign investor appetite for emerging market assets, including Indian equities. At the same time, geopolitical risks remain elevated. The Israel-Iran conflict entered its seventh day, with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejecting Trump’s demand for unconditional surrender. In response, Trump said his patience had run out and warned of unpredictable consequences.

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