Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade on Thursday (February 12, 2026), weighed down mainly by IT stocks and weak global signals. Investor sentiment stayed cautious as crude oil prices rose and overseas markets sent mixed cues.

Extending the previous day’s decline, the 30-share BSE Sensex fell 421.66 points, or 0.50%, to 83,811.98 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 121.10 points, or 0.47%, to 25,832.75.

Selling pressure was visible from the opening bell. The Nifty 50 index opened at 25,906.70, down 47.15 points or 0.18%, while the BSE Sensex opened at 83,968.43, lower by 265.21 points or 0.31%. Analysts also pointed to rising crude oil prices as adding caution among investors.

Among Sensex stocks, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL Technologies, Eternal, Mahindra & Mahindra, Asian Paints, HDFC Bank, Adani Ports, IndiGo, Maruti Suzuki India and Sun Pharmaceuticals were major laggards. Gains were seen in ICICI Bank, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India, Tata Steel, NTPC, Titan, Larsen & Toubro, Axis Bank and Bharti Airtel.

Sectorally, IT stocks bore the brunt. The BSE IT index dropped 3.95%, while the Focused IT index declined 3.87%. On the NSE, Nifty IT fell more than 2%, alongside declines in Auto, Metal, PSU Bank and Realty indices.

Analysts flag global signals and sector trends

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said, “Tech stocks, reeling under the ‘Anthropic shock’, are unlikely to recover soon. The sharp dip in the ADRs of top Indian IT companies in the US on Wednesday, indicates that Indian IT will continue to struggle. The switch from IT to other segments will help performing stocks in performing sectors”.

He added, "Support to the market has to come from earnings growth, and there are sectors like automobiles, jewellery, hotels, segments of capital goods, telecom and financials that are doing well on the earnings front and have the potential to continue to do well. Even with occasional profit booking, the undertone of the market will remain resilient mainly because there is a trend of FIIs turning buyers".

Further, he noted, "The fact that FIIs were buyers in six of the last seven trading sessions, indicate that at least the trend of sustained selling is over. In the near-term the market is likely to consolidate around the current levels with an upward bias."

Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, said, "Indian equity markets are expected to trade flat to mildly positive in today's session. Optimism surrounding the India-US interim trade framework continues to underpin sentiment, while stability in the rupee has eased currency-related concerns and strengthened foreign investor confidence. FPIs have extended their buying streak, providing a meaningful liquidity cushion, and steady DII participation is helping limit sharp downside risks".

Global cues, fund flows and commodities in focus

Asian markets showed mixed trends. South Korea’s Kospi surged over 2%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Shanghai’s SSE Composite traded higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng remained in the red. Singapore’s Straits Times gained 0.61%, Taiwan’s market stayed shut for a holiday.

US markets closed lower overnight on Wednesday. Vijayakumar said, "The latest US jobs data indicating addition of 1,30,000 jobs last month and unemployment falling to 4.3 per cent points to the possibility of no rate cuts by the Fed in the near-term. In India, too, it appears that the rate cutting cycle is over since growth is good and inflation is expected to inch back to the RBI's long-term target by the end of FY27."

Foreign institutional investors bought equities worth ₹943.81 crore on Wednesday (February 11), while domestic institutional investors sold ₹125.36 crore worth of stocks, exchange data showed.

Brent crude rose 0.46% to $69.72 per barrel. Gold slipped 0.43% to ₹1,58,079 per 10 grams, while silver fell 0.77% to ₹2,61,000 per kilogram at the time of filing this report.