Indian share benchmarks open lower, led by financials, IT stocks

India’s equity benchmarks opened lower on Friday, after a six-session rally, led by financials and IT stocks, with investors awaiting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium post market for policy cues.

The Nifty 50 fell 0.3% to 25,015 points and the BSE Sensex lost 0.3% to 81,793.98 as of 09:23 a.m. IST.

The indexes have gained in each of the last six sessions on hopes of revision in the goods and services tax (GST) and S&P’s sovereign rating upgrade.

Eleven of the 16 major sectors logged losses at the open, with heavyweight financials shedding 0.4%.

IT stocks, which gained 3% in the last three sessions, fell 0.1% ahead of Powell’s speech later in the day.