Indian equity markets experienced a sharp decline on Friday, February 13, amid a global selloff driven by concerns over tech margins and AI disruptions
The Indian benchmark indices plunged sharply, with the SENSEX falling as much as 828 points and the NIFTY50 slipping below 25,600, hitting an intraday low of 25,558. The decline was primarily led by heavy losses in information technology giants such as Infosys, TCS, HCL Technologies, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, Hindalco, and Hindustan Unilever.
As of 9:44 am, the SENSEX was down 776 points at 82,898, while the NIFTY50 had fallen 249 points to 25,558.
Global markets also retreated from record highs, with Asian shares declining as concerns over shrinking tech margins, particularly impacting companies like Apple, increased investor risk aversion ahead of key US inflation data. Japan’s Nikkei dropped 0.7%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.83%, China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.4%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 decreased by 1.35%.
In the US, markets ended Thursday on a bearish note, with the Dow Jones down 1.3%, closing below 50,000, and the S&P 500 plunging 1.5%. The NASDAQ suffered the steepest decline, falling 2% amid growing skepticism around AI stocks and their impact on margins across sectors like finance, transportation, logistics, and commercial real estate.
Back home, the IT sector was hit hardest, with a collective loss of over 400 points from the SENSEX, according to BSE data. The NIFTY IT index has declined by 12% over the past three trading sessions, marking a third consecutive day of intense selling pressure.
During intraday trading, the IT index fell as much as 5.24%, reaching a low of 31,423. All 10 stocks in the index declined, led by Infosys’ nearly 6% drop. Other major losers included TCS, Wipro, HCL Technologies, and Oracle Financial Services Software, with declines ranging from 3.5% to 5.3%.
The downturn is driven by concerns over AI-led disruptions in the IT industry worldwide, raising fears about the future of traditional IT companies.
Across sectors, all 15 major indices tracked by NSE declined, including Auto, FMCG, Metals, PSU Banks, Pharma, Realty, Consumer Durables, and Oil & Gas, which fell between 0.5% and 2.5%.
Broader markets also declined, with the NIFTY Midcap 100 dropping 1.27% and the Smallcap 100 plunging 1.53%.
Hindalco was among the top losers in NIFTY50, falling over 5% to ₹910 after reporting a 45% YoY decline in Q3 FY26 net profit to ₹2,049 crore, mainly due to disruptions caused by fires at its Novelis aluminium plant in Oswego, New York, in September and November 2025.
Other major fallers included Infosys, HCL Tech, TCS, Wipro, ONGC, Tech Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, Adani Enterprises, and Eternal, which declined between 2.2% and 6.2%.
On the positive side, SBI Life, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, HDFC Life, and HDFC Bank posted gains.
Market breadth was heavily skewed towards declines, with 2,330 shares falling and only 382 advancing on NSE.