Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Jan 5: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty opened on a weak note on Monday, weighed down by selling pressure in blue-chip information technology stocks.
The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 125.96 points to 85,636.05 in early trade, while the 50-share NSE Nifty slipped 30.95 points to 26,297.60.
Among Sensex constituents, HCL Technologies, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services and NTPC were among the major laggards. On the other hand, Bharat Electronics, Tata Steel, Axis Bank and Reliance Industries were trading in the green.
According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 289.80 crore on Friday, while domestic institutional investors also remained net buyers with purchases worth Rs 677.38 crore.
Commenting on market sentiment, V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Ltd, said the year 2026 has begun amid major geopolitical developments with potential global repercussions, adding that recent US actions in Venezuela could further destabilise global geopolitics.
In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and China’s Shanghai Composite were trading significantly higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was marginally lower. US markets ended mostly higher on Friday.
Meanwhile, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, slipped 0.08 per cent to USD 60.70 per barrel.
On Friday, the Sensex had surged 573.41 points, or 0.67 per cent, to close at 85,762.01, while the Nifty advanced 182 points, or 0.70 per cent, to settle at 26,328.55.