Sensex Opens in Red, Falls 280 Points; Nifty Below 25,300, HUL Rises 3%

Markets Open Lower on TCS Earnings Miss; HUL Rallies Nearly 4%.

Indian equity markets started Friday’s session on a weak note, weighed down by lower-than-expected Q1 results from Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and cautious investor sentiment.

At 9:32 am, the BSE Sensex dropped 250 points to 82,939.91, while the Nifty50 slipped 65 points to 25,290.30.

Earnings Drag, Valuation Concerns Weigh on Sentiment
Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said the broader market is undergoing valuation-led correction, while large-cap stocks continue to outperform.

“Nifty delivered 7.9% returns in H1 2025, outperforming small- and mid-cap indices. However, India is underperforming global markets like South Korea and Germany due to elevated valuations,” he said.

Top Movers: HUL Leads Gainers, TCS Slides
Gainers in early trade:

Hindustan Unilever (HUL): +3.94%

Asian Paints: +0.75%

Axis Bank: +0.69%

Power Grid: +0.58%

NTPC: +0.50%

Top laggards:

TCS: –1.93% (post weak Q1 results)

Mahindra & Mahindra: –1.75%

Infosys: –1.60%

Bharti Airtel: –0.89%

Reliance Industries: –0.76%

Sector Overview: FMCG, Pharma Hold Ground; IT, Media Slide
Gaining sectors:

Nifty FMCG +1.08%

Nifty Pharma +0.89%

Nifty PSU Bank +0.39%

Nifty Healthcare +0.50%

Weak sectors:

Nifty IT –1.19%

Nifty Media –1.51%

Nifty Auto –0.59%

Nifty Consumer Durables –0.46%

Nifty Oil & Gas –0.46%

Broader Market Snapshot
Nifty Midcap100: –0.09%

Nifty Smallcap100: –0.18%

India VIX: –0.68%, indicating low near-term volatility

With IT earnings off to a soft start and valuations still high across segments, analysts expect investors to rotate into defensive and fairly valued sectors like FMCG, telecom, and oil & gas. Midcap IT, in particular, may see relative strength in coming sessions.