By Vivek Kumar M and Bharath Rajeswaran
(Reuters) -Indian shares fell on Thursday as investor sentiment cooled after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell raised doubts over a December rate reduction following a 25-basis-point cut, while caution over the U.S.-China deal weighed on other Asian markets.
The Nifty 50 fell 0.68% to 25,877.85 and the BSE Sensex lost 0.7% to 84,404.46.
Despite the drop on the day, the Nifty and Sensex have gained about 5.2% each in October and are trading nearly 1.5% and 1.8%, respectively, below their all-time highs hit in September 2024.
Powell’s statements, which indicated that Wednesday’s cut could likely be the last one this year due to the lack of official data during the ongoing federal government shutdown, prompted some caution, according to analysts.
Other Asian markets fell 0.4% as investors worried that the tariff detente between the U.S. and China could prove fleeting. U.S. President Donald Trump said he had made a trade deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping on rare earths and tariffs.
“The U.S-China agreements appear to be marginal in nature and targeted at specific current ‘pain’ points. They do not, at least to us, represent a ‘grand bargain’ or a large-scale reset of the relationship,” said William Bratton, analyst at BNP Paribas Exane.
Fourteen of the 16 major sectors declined, while the broader small-caps and mid-caps fell 0.1% each.
Pharma index lost 0.6%, dragged by a 3.9% drop in drugmaker Dr Reddy’s Laboratories after its weight-loss drug faced regulatory setback in Canada.
Cipla, which posted a profit beat, fell 2.5% after it announced that its global CEO Umang Vohra will step down, effective March 2026.
Automaker Hyundai Motor India rose 2.4% after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and strong outlook for its export business.
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran and Vivek Kumar M in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy, Janane Venkatraman and Mrigank Dhaniwala)
