Stock Market Today: Indian benchmark indices opened sharply lower on Tuesday, 24 February 2026, tracking weak global cues and sustained selling pressure in heavyweights. The BSE Sensex slipped 730.16 points lower, or 0.88 per cent, at 82,564.50 at 9:50 am, after opening in the red, reflecting broad-based weakness across sectors.
Meanwhile, the Nifty 50 declined below the 25,500 level to 25,482.85, down 230.15 points or 0.89 per cent. The downturn was driven by a sharp sell-off in domestic IT stocks, which weighed heavily on the benchmarks. Sentiment was further dampened by weak global cues, adding to the cautious undertone in early trade.
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments, noted, “President Trump’s State of the Union address today and the message that he would convey will be keenly watched by markets globally. The EU freezing the deal with US in the light of the tariff changes following the US Supreme Court verdict and Trump’s warnings to countries backing away from deals indicate that the tariff drama has more in store for economies and markets. We will have to wait and watch how this drama plays out.”
“Meanwhile, the trend of weakness in tech stocks stemming from the potential AI impact continues. The weakness in the ADRs of Indian IT companies indicates that this segment will continue to remain under pressure. A positive trend in the market that will have significant bearing on the markets is the change in the FII strategy in India. FIIs have been buyers in ten out of the last seventeen trading sessions indicating their renewed interest in India. The improving corporate earnings in India is the principal reason for this change in FII stance. Given the robust macros of the Indian economy and improving corporate earnings, this FII buying trend can continue. Therefore, sectors in which FIIs have been buyers like capital goods and financials will remain resilient and the IT segment in which they have been sellers will continue to be weak. So, watch out for the stocks in these segments,” he added.
Key Factors Behind The Fall
IT stocks under pressure: IT shares experienced heavy selling after renewed global concerns over AI-led disruption intensified. The sentiment turned negative following claims by Anthropic that its Claude Code tools can significantly cut the cost and complexity of modernising legacy software systems. The Nifty IT index fell 2.84 per cent around 9:30 am, making it the worst-performing sector on the benchmark indices.
Weak global cues: Asian markets were largely subdued, while Wall Street fell overnight after Donald Trump cautioned countries against walking away from newly negotiated trade deals following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down emergency tariffs. He warned that significantly higher duties could be imposed under alternative trade laws.
Rupee weakens: The rupee declined by 7 paise to 90.96 against the US dollar in early Tuesday trade, pressured by rising global crude oil prices and a strengthening greenback. A weak start in domestic equities further weighed on the currency. However, foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows helped limit the downside, forex traders said. In the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.91 and slipped to 90.96, compared to its previous close.
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