Oil surge, IT slump drag Sensex down 1,000 points

Indian equity indices extended their losing streak for the third consecutive session on Friday, with the Nifty 50 slipping below the 24,000 mark.

At close, the Sensex fell 999.79 points, or 1.29 per cent, to settle at 76,664.21, while the Nifty declined 275.10 points, or 1.14 per cent, to close at 23,897.95.

The decline was primarily driven by rising crude oil prices amid tensions in West Asia, along with sharp weakness in IT stocks following subdued outlooks from Infosys and HCL Tech, which weighed on overall sentiment.

On the sectoral front, all major indices ended in the red, indicating broad-based weakness. The sharpest decline was seen in the Nifty IT index, which dropped 5.29 per cent, according to Bajaj Broking Market Commentary.

Other sectors such as media, pharma and healthcare also recorded losses in the range of 1 to 3 per cent, with no sector managing to close in positive territory.

The broader market mirrored the weakness, with the Nifty Midcap 100 declining 0.96 per cent and the Smallcap index falling 0.87 per cent, reflecting widespread selling pressure.

On the technical front, the Nifty formed a bearish candlestick pattern on the weekly chart, signalling profit booking at higher levels around the key resistance zone of 24,650–24,800, which is the confluence of the previous breakdown area, the 52-week EMA and the 61.8 per cent retracement of the entire decline from 26,373 to 22,183.

The Nifty has witnessed profit booking over the past three sessions after rallying more than 2,400 points in just three weeks, pushing weekly stochastic oscillators into overbought territory.

Analysts said some consolidation at current levels could not be ruled out and expected the index to move in the 23,600–24,700 range. Stock-specific action is likely to remain in focus as the quarterly earnings season progresses.

Immediate support is placed around the 23,600–23,500 levels. A breach below this could open further downside towards 23,100 in the coming week.