INDIA STOCKS-High oil prices and weak IT forecasts drag Indian shares to weekly losses
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Updates for markets close
By Bharath Rajeswaran
April 24 (Reuters) - Indian shares fell on Friday, posting weekly losses as Middle East tension-linked higher oil prices and a slump in IT stocks after weak forecasts from Infosys and HCLTech dented sentiment.
The Nifty 50 .NSEI fell 1.14% to 23,897.95, and the BSE Sensex .BSESN shed 1.27% to 76,681.29.
The benchmark indexes lost 1.9% and 2.3% respectively this week, after two weeks of gains.
Iran displayed its grip over the Strait of Hormuz with a video of its commandos storming a cargo ship following the collapse of peace negotiations and U.S. President Donald Trump's indefinite extension of the ceasefire.
Brent crude LCOc1 hovered around $107 a barrel.
"The rally in the last two weeks, driven by hopes of progress in U.S.-Iran talks, suggests some buying support, but sentiment will stay subdued and markets sluggish as long as crude remains above $100 a barrel," said Aishvarya Dadheech, founder and chief investment officer at Fident Asset Management.
Higher crude prices hurt India by stoking inflation, swelling the import bill, and weighing on growth and corporate earnings, factors HSBC and J.P.Morgan cited in downgrading Indian equities this week.
Eleven of the 16 major sectors logged weekly losses. The broader small-caps .NIFSMCP100 were little-changed while mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 fell 0.9%.
The IT index .NIFTYIT slid 5.3% on the day and 10.3% for the week. HCLTech HCLT.NS and Infosys INFY.NS logged weekly losses of 16.6% and 12.4% on their weak fiscal 2027 revenue forecasts, due to macro uncertainty and subdued client spending.
IT index constituents lost over $26 billion in market value this week.
"Muted earnings and cautious commentary from IT companies are reinforcing concerns that AI-driven deflationary pressure on revenues could be significant," said Dadheech.
Bucking the broader weakness, consumer heavyweight Nestle India NEST.NS jumped 10.6% this week, after posting a sharp rise in quarterly profit on strong demand.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries RELI.NS fell 2.7% this week ahead of its quarterly results due after market close on Friday.
