Mumbai: Indian equity markets snapped their three-week gaining streak, posting the worst weekly decline in nearly six months, weighed down by persistent foreign institutional investor (FII) selling, fresh US tariffs on pharmaceuticals, rising visa fees, a weakening rupee, and a softer dollar. However, continued domestic institutional investor (DII) support and GST implementation provided partial cushioning.

Nifty and Sensex weekly performance

For the week ended September 26, Nifty50 fell 672.35 points or 2.65 percent, finishing at 24,654.70, while the BSE Sensex declined 2,199.77 points or 2.66 percent, closing at 80,426.46. The BSE Small-cap index suffered a sharper 4.2 percent fall, with stocks such as Shankara Building Products, Apollo Pipes, SML Isuzu, MIC Electronics, Prudent Corporate Advisory Services, Sigachi Industries, Cigniti Technologies, SMS Pharmaceuticals, Eimco Elecon, Vishnu Prakash R Punglia, IOL Chemicals, and Parsvnath Developers losing up to 77 percent. Conversely, Zuari Industries, TVS Electronics, Indo Thai Securities, OM Infra, RACL Geartech, Allcargo Terminals, Automotive Stampings and Assemblies rose between 20-30 percent.

The BSE Large-cap index fell nearly 3 percent, dragged by Tech Mahindra, Waaree Energies, Swiggy, Tata Consultancy Services, Indian Hotels Company, Divis Laboratories, and LTIMindtree. The BSE Mid-cap index shed 4.5 percent, with Hexaware Technologies, Coforge, MphasiS, Kalyan Jewellers India, Laurus Labs, and Persistent Systems down between 10-15 percent.

Market movers and sector performance

During the week, Tata Consultancy Services lost the most in terms of market capitalisation, followed by Reliance Industries, Infosys, and HDFC Bank. On the other hand, Maruti Suzuki India, Larsen & Toubro, and Axis Bank added the most market value.

All major sectoral indices posted negative returns. The Nifty IT index plunged 8 percent, Nifty Realty shed 6 percent, Nifty Pharma fell 5.2 percent, Nifty Consumer Durables slipped 4.6 percent, and Nifty Defence declined 4.4 percent, highlighting broad-based weakness across market segments.

FII and DII activity

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) remained net sellers for the 13th consecutive week, offloading equities worth ₹19,570.03 crore. Meanwhile, Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) continued their buying streak for the 24th consecutive week, purchasing equities worth ₹17,411.40 crore, reflecting sustained domestic support despite foreign outflows.

Currency impact

The Indian rupee touched a fresh record low of 88.80 against the US dollar during the week and closed near the low at 88.71 per dollar, down 61 paise from the previous week’s close of 88.10. The currency traded in the range of 88.80–88.12 during the week, adding pressure to import-dependent sectors and contributing to overall market volatility.

Conclusion

The week’s market performance underscores the continued volatility driven by global factors, policy changes, and foreign selling, despite domestic institutional support and macroeconomic reforms like GST implementation. Analysts suggest that investors monitor currency movements and FII flows closely, as these factors are likely to continue influencing Indian markets in the near term.