Pharma Stocks Lead Market Sell-Off After Trump’s 100% Tariff Threat.
Benchmark indices extended losses for a fifth straight session on Friday, dragged down by a sharp sell-off in pharmaceutical shares after US President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on branded drug imports. At 9:24 am, the S&P BSE Sensex slipped 240.39 points to 80,919.29, while the NSE Nifty50 fell 86.30 points to 24,804.55. Weakness was broad-based, with mid- and small-cap indices also under pressure.
The Nifty Pharma index dropped 2.45%, led by declines in Sun Pharma, Cipla, and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories. IT stocks also continued to slide, with Infosys, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, and HCLTech among the major laggards.
“Trump’s tariff tantrums are back, this time targeting patented and branded drugs. While India’s generic exports may not be hit immediately, the risk is that generics could be the next target,”
said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
He added that Trump’s move from country-specific to product-specific tariffs signals uncertainty until US inflation pressures trigger a policy rethink.
Persistent foreign institutional investor (FII) outflows also weighed on sentiment. Vijayakumar suggested investors use dips to accumulate high-quality, consumption-driven stocks. On the technical front, Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit, noted that Nifty’s proximity to its 20-day simple moving average could spark a pullback. However, if gains stall near 25,080, bears may retain control, pushing the index towards 24,680.
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