After opening the day lower, the benchmark indices continued their downward momentum and ended the session in the red.

Indian equity market indices Sensex and Nifty came under heavy selling pressure on Friday as panic selling among retail investors, coupled with sustained offloading of equities by foreign investors, hit the market sentiment.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex closed lower by 733 points (down 0.9%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed 236 points lower (down 0.9%).

Tata Motors, ITC, and  Reliance Industries are among the top gainers today.

M&M, Eternal, and Tata Steel, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The GIFT Nifty was trading at  24,959, lower by 160 points at the time of writing.

The BSE MidCap index ended 1.9% lower, and the BSE SmallCap index ended 2% lower.

Sectoral indices are trading negatively today, with stocks in the realty sector and the auto sector witnessing selling pressure.

The rupee is trading at Rs 88.1 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading 0.4% higher at Rs 113,066 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices were trading 0.5% higher at Rs 137,792 per 1 kg.

Here are four reasons why Indian share markets are down:

#1 Tariff on Pharma Sector

US President Donald Trump's new tariffs on imported goods, including branded and patented drugs, have shaken Indian markets. The pharma sector was particularly affected, with a 2% decline in the pharma index and up to 5% fall in stocks like Sun Pharma and Dr. Reddy's Labs.

The impact will likely continue until a bilateral agreement is signed between the US and India.

#2 H-1 B Visa Fee Hike

The US administration's recent hike in H-1B visa fees to $100,000 has negatively impacted Indian IT stocks. Companies like Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, and HCL Technologies have seen significant declines due to their heavy reliance on H-1B visas.

Indians account for 70% of these visas, and the fee hike is expected to affect the services sector broadly.

#3 Fed Rate Cut Bets Recede

US GDP data has reduced expectations of further rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Investors now see an 87% chance of a rate cut in October and 62% in December, down from previous estimates.

#4 Relentless FPI selloff

Foreign portfolio investors have sold Rs 1,380 bn of stocks in September, taking their total sell-off to Rs 1,448 bn in 2025. Sustained FPI selling may keep the market under pressure, experts warn.

Meanwhile, FPIs are buying in markets like Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea, contributing to Indian stock market's underperformance.
 

Tata Motors Surges Post Cyber Recovery

In the news from auto sector, shares of Tata Motors surges over 2% after the company informed that Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) began a phased restart of operations after a cyberattack earlier this week.

Following the recent cyber incident, Tata Motors announced on Thursday that Jaguar Land Rover has started a controlled, phased restart of operations, with parts of its digital estate now restored.

Due to a significant cyberattack earlier this week, Jaguar Land Rover had to halt production temporarily.

JLR has increased its IT capacity for invoicing and is working to clear supplier payment backlogs. The company's Global Parts Logistics Centre is now fully operational, allowing retailers to continue servicing vehicles.

The financial system for vehicle wholesales is now online, allowing for faster sales and registrations, and improving cash flow. Jaguar Land Rover said these steps are crucial as they work with cybersecurity specialists and the UK government to ensure a safe restart.
 

Jindal Stainless Rises on Green Investment

Moving on to the news from steel sector, shares of Jindal Stainless came into focus following the company's announcement that it is currently investing Rs 7 billion (bn) in decarbonisation projects. In FY25, it also decreased CO2 emissions by 3,18,248 metric tonnes.

The largest captive solar plant in Odisha is one of the measures the stainless-steel manufacturer, Jindal Stainless Ltd (JSL), is taking to lessen its carbon footprint, according to a statement.

In comparison to FY24, JSL avoided about 3,18,248 metric tonnes (MT) of carbon emissions in FY25, a 14% year-over-year (YoY) decrease.

As was accomplished for FY25 in terms of emission reductions compared to the FY24 baseline, the company's goal for FY26 is to build on this momentum and further reduce emissions.

This is a component of the medium- and long-term plan to reach net zero by 2050 and a 50% reduction by 2035.

The biggest producer of stainless steel in India, JSL, is expanding its facilities to reach 4.2 million tonnes of melt capacity per year by FY27.

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