Taking Stock: Nifty below 25,500, Sensex tanks 1,048 pts; IT sell-off deepens on AI concerns

Market Today

• Sensex and Nifty fell over 1% amid IT sector selloff
• Nifty IT index fell 9% this week, largest drop since April 2025
• All major sector indices ended in the red on February 13

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Indian benchmark indices extended their decline for a second consecutive session on February 13, weighed down by a sharp selloff in IT stocks on third consecutive session amid rising concerns over the impact of artificial intelligence on the sector. The Nifty IT index tumbled 9 percent this week, witnessing biggest weekly fall since April 2025.

At close, the Sensex was down 1,048.16 points or 1.25 percent at 82,626.76, and the Nifty was down 336.10 points or 1.30 percent at 25,471.10.

For the week, BSE Sensex shed 1.1 percent and Nifty index fell 0.9 percent.

Broader markets also witnessed heavy selling, with the Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices shedding nearly 2 percent each.

Also Read - Mid, small-cap earnings show revenue strength but margin pressure in December quarter

Among the top laggards on the Nifty were Hindalco Industries, Hindustan Unilever, Eternal, Adani Enterprises, and ONGC. On the other side, Bajaj Finance, Eicher Motors, SBI Life Insurance, State Bank of India, and Cipla managed to close in positive territory.

Sectorally, all major indices ended in the red. Energy, Metal, and Realty indices declined 2–3 percent each, while IT, Consumer Durables, FMCG, Telecom, Infra, Auto, Power, PSU, and Oil & Gas indices fell around 1 percent each.

Also Read - Gold bounces back from near one-week low; US inflation data in focus

Index	Prices	Change	Change%
Sensex	76,034.42	-829.29	-1.08%
Nifty 50	23,639.15	-227.70	-0.95%
Nifty Bank	55,100.95	-634.80	-1.14%

Nifty 50 23,639.15 -227.70 (-0.95%)

Thu, Mar 12, 2026

• 1D
• 5D
• 1M
• 3M
• 6M
• 1Y
• 2Y

Biggest Gainer	Prices	Change	Change%
Coal India	470.10	23.35	+5.23%

Biggest Loser	Prices	Change	Change%
M&M	3,031.20	-137.00	-4.32%

Best Sector	Prices	Change	Change%
Nifty Energy	36834.35	695.85	+1.93%

Worst Sector	Prices	Change	Change%
Nifty Auto	25098.00	-828.00	-3.19%

In stock specific actions, Muthoot Finance shared dropped 11% despite Q3 profit jumps 95%, Hindalco Industries shares fell 6% despite better earnings, ONGC shares declined 3% on posting flat revenue, Transrail Lighting shares price rose 1% on bagging Rs 2,350 crore of domestic EPC orders, Indian Hotels Company shares fell 1% despite strong earnings, Travel Food Services share price shed 5% despite better earnings.

Also Read - AI jitters hit IT stocks, but fund managers stay the course on sector holding for now

Nearly 200 stocks touched their 52-week low, including Cohance Life, LT Technology, Newgen Software, Firstsource Solutions, Syngene International, KPIT Technologies, Vedant Fashions, Route, Mastek, Tata Technologies, Clean Science, Kansai Nerolac, Poly Medicure, AWL Agri, IGL, TCS, Infosys, Sonata Software, Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency, Oracle Financial Services Software, among others. Click to View More

Outlook for February 16

Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking

Markets traded with a negative bias on Friday and remained under pressure for most of the session, with the Nifty slipping sharply as selling in heavyweight technology stocks intensified. After a weak start, the benchmark index moved in a narrow range during the first half, but the decline deepened as the session progressed. It eventually settled near the day’s low to close at 25,471.10. Selling was broad-based, with IT stocks among the top losers, while weakness was also visible in the metal, realty, and FMCG segments.

Investor sentiment weakened as global technology stocks stayed under pressure, reinforcing risk-off behaviour in domestic markets. In addition, the absence of any fresh positive domestic triggers kept the overall mood subdued.

The sharp fall in the IT pack has significantly altered the market tone, and a break below the 25,400 mark could open the door for a move toward the 25,100 gap area. On the upside, the 25,700–26,000 zone is likely to act as a strong resistance band in case of any recovery. Apart from IT, FMCG and realty also appear vulnerable to further declines, while banking, auto, energy, and select metal stocks may continue to show relatively better strength. Participants should align their positions accordingly and keep position sizes under control in light of the renewed weakness.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities

The Nifty opened gap-down, reflecting early weakness in IT stocks following negative cues from the US markets. At the end, the Nifty ended the session significantly lower. India VIX also moved back above its 200DMA, indicating rising fear among the market participants.

From a technical standpoint, the setup has turned relatively cautious, with the index slipping below its 20DMA for the first time in the past few sessions. Additionally, it has breached the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement of the prior upmove from 24,571 to 26,341.

With the index closing below the key support level of 25,500, the near-term bias appears weak, and there is potential for a decline toward the 25,000 mark in the short term. On the upside, immediate resistance is seen around 25,800.

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