Weekly Wrap: Investors lose ₹16 lakh crore; NIFTY50 falls nearly 3%, IT index plunges 8% on H-1B visa row

Markets came under pressure this week as concerns over the steep hike in US H-1B visa fees, persistent foreign fund outflows, and renewed tariff tensions weighed on investor sentiment.

The US President Donald Trump signed the executive order to raise the fees of H1-B visa holders to $100,000 annually. The new executive order is expected to adversely impact all IT companies that have their professionals working in the US on H1-B visas.

Further, Trump on Thursday also said that the US will impose 100% import tariffs on pharmaceutical drugs, 50% on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, 30% on upholstered furniture, and 25% on heavy trucks starting October 1.

The NSE-listed companies erased market capitalisation (mcap) of nearly ₹16 lakh crore during the week.

As many as 43 stocks posted weekly losses on NIFTY50. Among them, Tech Mahindra led the weekly losers with a 9.4% drop, while TCS slid 8.5%—its steepest fall in more than five years.

Trent and Wipro also ranked among the top losers, slipping 8% each, while Jio Financial Services and Infosys declined 6.7% and 5.9%, respectively, over the week.

On the upside, Maruti Suzuki (2.7%), Axis Bank (1.6%), Larsen & Toubro (1.5%), Eicher Motors (1.1%), Adani Enterprises (0.8%), JSW Steel (0.7%), ONGC (0.6%) and Hindalco Industries (0.01%) were the only gainers for the week.

HSBC Global Investment Research noted on Friday that Indian equities have underperformed emerging markets by 32 percentage points since mid-September 2024—the steepest lag since 2001—but the global brokerage now sees the market as attractive.

“In cricketing terms, we expect it to return to form. Valuations have fallen – the premium to the region is back at historical levels – while lower inflation and easing measures should support growth. We think earnings are near the bottom and are set to improve,” the note further added.

The brokerage also said that is the favourable time for the foreign investors to return to the Indian equity market, after being absent for 12 months.

On the sectoral front, Nifty IT slumped 8%, marking its worst weekly drop in six months. Nifty Realty (-6.1%), Pharma (-5.2%), Consumer Durables (-4.6%) and Media (-2.7%) also featured among the biggest losers.

Coforge (-14.3%), Mphasis (-11.7%), and Persistent Systems (-10.1%) led the Nifty IT index gains during the week.

During the week, the Nifty Smallcap 100 fell sharply by 5.1%, significantly underperforming the broader market, while the Nifty Midcap 100 dipped 2.1%.

On the Nifty Smallcap 100, Redington (-11.6%), IFCI (-10.8%), Laurus Labs (-10.7%), PG Electroplast (-9.9%), and Piramal Pharma (-9.9%) emerged as the top laggards.

In contrast, Hindustan Copper (10.3%), Anant Raj (6.1%), Kaynes Technology (2.6%), CreditAccess Grameen (1%), Go Digit General Insurance (0.04%) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (0.02%) were the main gainers on the index.

On the Nifty Midcap 100, Coforge (-14.3%), Mphasis (-11.7%), Kalyan Jewellers (-10.9%), Persistent Systems (-10.1%) and IREDA (-9.1%) were the main losers.

On the flip side, AU Small Finance Bank (3.4%), Muthoot Finance (2.9%), HPCL (2.2%), Oil India (1.5%), Ashok Leyland (0.7%), Indian Bank (0.7%) and SBI Cards and Payment Services (0.3%) were the only gainers.