Indian Shares Decline As IT Sell-off Deepens On AI-related Concerns

(RTTNews) - Indian shares ended Thursday's session lower as IT stocks extended their slide from the previous session on renewed concerns about the disruption AI start-ups will have on established companies.

Rising oil prices on heightened U.S.-Iran tensions and HUL's muted Q3 numbers also dented investor sentiment.

The benchmark BSE Sensex dropped 558.72 points, or 0.66 percent, to 83,674.92 on its weekly derivatives expiry day.

The broader NSE Nifty index fell 146.65 points, or 0.57 percent, to 25,807.20 while the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indexes ended down half a percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.

The market breadth was weak on the BSE, with 2,527 shares falling while 1,680 shares advanced and 161 shares closed unchanged.

Among the prominent decliners, HCL Technologies, TCS, Infosys and Tech Mahindra slumped 5-6 percent on near-term growth concerns and fragile global sentiment towards the IT sector.

According to media reports, clients in the U.S. and Europe are being more cautious with discretionary IT spends, especially on older projects, until budgets are clearer.

The talk around AI has added to uncertainty about how fast traditional service models might change.