Indian equities slipped into the red after noon on October 14 as selling spread beyond a handful of technology stocks, with inflation concerns, expensive crude oil and persistent foreign outflows weighing on sentiment.
At 1:19 pm, Sensex traded at 72,657.91, down 375.87 points, or 0.51 per cent. Nifty fell 146.10 points, or 0.64 per cent, to 22,575.85. These are intraday readings, not closing figures.
The reversal followed Tuesday's sharp rally, when Sensex gained 1,109.10 points, and Nifty advanced 358.60 points.
Inflation adds to market concerns
September wholesale inflation rose to 11.39 per cent from 9.92 per cent in August, with higher food, fuel and manufacturing prices contributing to the increase. The noon release added another inflation concern to an already cautious market. Higher input prices can squeeze corporate margins and complicate expectations of easier monetary policy. However, the data alone cannot establish the cause of the intraday decline.
Brent crude remained above $106 a barrel, while US bond yields hovered near 5.23 per cent.
Expensive oil raises concerns about India's import bill, inflation and company costs. Elevated global yields also keep overseas capital allocation challenging for Indian equities.
Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth ₹1,305.13 crore on Tuesday. Reuters reported that foreign investors had remained net sellers for 13 consecutive sessions.
Financial and pharma stocks drag
By 1:21 pm, Bajaj Finance was down 2.25 per cent, Bajaj Finserv fell 2.59 per cent and Sun Pharma lost 2.28 per cent. L&T, Adani Ports and IndiGo also declined in the afternoon session.
IT and FMCG remained relatively resilient, but their strength could not offset wider weakness. Thirty-four Nifty constituents traded lower, while midcap and smallcap indices also slipped.
The pattern suggests Tuesday's earnings-led rebound had not yet translated into sustained buying across sectors. Investors now await further corporate results and US inflation data for clues on the next market move.
