Markets slip after early gains amid foreign fund outflow, H-1B fee concerns

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty slipped in the negative territory after rising in early trade on Tuesday amid fresh foreign fund outflow and concerns over the steep hike in US H-1B visa fees.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 147.53 points to 82,307.50 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty went up by 48.5 points to 25,250.85.

However, soon after both the benchmark indices turned negative. The BSE benchmark quoted 185.86 points lower at 81,980.47, and the Nifty traded 61.50 points down at 25,135.45.

From the Sensex firms, UltraTech Cement, Titan, Asian Paints, Adani Ports, Trent and Sun Pharma were among the major laggards.

However, Maruti, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and Tata Steel were among the gainers.

"Sentiment remains fragile as Trump's USD 100,000 ‘one-time payment' H-1B visa fee and tariff threats weigh on hopes of an India-US trade deal, stirring anxiety in the Nifty IT index," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,910.09 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.

In Asian markets, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng quoted lower while South Korea's Kospi traded in positive territory.

US markets ended higher on Monday. Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.60 per cent to USD 66.17 a barrel.

"The major drag on the market since the 2024 September peak is the sustained FII selling, which, in turn, is being triggered by the high valuations in India and attractive valuations elsewhere. The high valuation differential between India and other markets have enabled the FIIs to move money from India to other markets and profit from it," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

The scenario will change when India's corporate earnings start improving, he added.

On Monday, the Sensex dropped 466.26 points or 0.56 per cent to settle at 82,159.97. The Nifty declined 124.70 points or 0.49 per cent to 25,202.35.