The Indian stock markets faced significant declines early on Friday, with IT stocks falling for the second consecutive day following a slump in US tech stocks over artificial intelligence (AI) apprehensions. The Sensex plummeted by 672 points, or 0.80%, to 83,002, while the Nifty saw a loss of 207 points, or 0.80%, reaching 25,600. Notably, the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices recorded more substantial losses compared to the benchmark indices.
All sectoral indices experienced a downturn, with the Nifty IT sector being the most prominent loser, dropping by 4.43%. Additionally, realty and media sectors witnessed declines of 2.70% and 1.26%, respectively. Market analysts indicated that the immediate support level for Nifty is situated within the 25,650-25,700 range, with resistance noted at 25,900-25,950.
The banking sector also saw fluctuations, with Bank Nifty reaching a high of 60,864 in the previous session, dropping to a low of 60,597, and eventually closing slightly lower at 60,739. Analysts highlighted resistance levels at 60,950–61,050 and support levels at 60,450–60,550. The decline in IT stocks was attributed to concerns that advanced AI technologies might replace conventional services, impacting the revenue streams of Indian IT companies.
The launch of “Claude Cowork,” an AI assistant by Anthropic earlier this month, raised fears of enterprise automation plug-ins that could automate entire business workflows. In the Asia-Pacific region, markets mirrored Wall Street’s losses due to concerns of AI disruption affecting the profitability of traditional IT firms through task automation. Notably, China’s Shanghai and Shenzhen indices declined, Japan’s Nikkei lost ground, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index saw a decrease, while South Korea’s Kospi recorded a slight increase.
In the US, the Nasdaq, S&P 500, and Dow Jones indices closed in the red, with Nasdaq falling by 2.04%, S&P 500 by 1.57%, and Dow Jones by 1.34%. On February 12, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of equities worth Rs 108 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 277 crore.
