Indian shares slipped on Friday after a five-day rally, dragged by tech stocks including HCL Technologies, while global risk sentiment soured after hawkish comments from U.S. central bank officials cemented expectations of tighter monetary conditions.
The NSE Nifty 50 index fell 0.27% to 18,209.60 by 0448 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex shed 0.32% to 61,048.44.
Both indexes have recovered nearly 10% since slipping into correction territory on Dec. 20, as investors took heart from low hospitalisations despite a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases and focused on the December-quarter corporate earnings season.
On Friday, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.8% after U.S. Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard on Thursday indicated interest rates would rise in March to contain high inflation. [MKTS/GLOB]
"We are seeing a marginal cool-off in prices as we are mirroring moves from broader Asian markets," said Siddhartha Khemka, head of retail research at Motilal Oswal Securities in Mumbai.
In Mumbai, all major Nifty sub-indexes were in negative territory with the IT sub-index, down 1.4%, leading the decline.
IT services provider Mindtree fell 5.6% to its lowest in more than three weeks, as December-quarter results failed to impress market participants.
Peer HCL Technologies fell 2.8% and was the biggest percentage loser on the Nifty 50 ahead of results.
Recent high flying metal stocks slipped 0.4%, after a 3.5% jump in the previous session on the back of firm commodity prices in the global market.
Shares of Tata Metaliks dropped 6% after the iron pipe maker reported a drop in quarterly profit.
Among gainers, conglomerate Reliance Industries inched up nearly 1% after it said it would invest $80.49 billion to set up green energy projects and bolster its retail and telecom arms in the western state of Gujarat.
Meanwhile, India's daily COVID-19 cases surged by 264,202 on Friday.
