Infosys shares hit a new 52-week low of Rs. 1,009.20 on Monday on the Bombay Stock Exchange even as reports surfaced that the company sacked about 500 employees at its Bengaluru and Hyderabad centres over "performance" issues. The company denied the number, but said "few" were asked to leave.
The Infosys stock closed at Rs. 1,015.40, down 0.56 percent. Shares of the company have been on a downhill ever since it declared its June quarter results and lowered its revenue guidance for the current financial year.
The stock pulled the BSE Information Technology down 1.07 percent; Wipro closed 1.02 percent lower at Rs. 515.30, while TCS lost 2.02 percent and ended at Rs. 2,551.45.
The Sensex lost 91 points to close at 27,985, while the NSE Nifty edged 37 points lower to end at 8,629. Top Sensex losers included Lupin, TCS, NTPC and Sun Pharma.
On the NSE, stocks that pulled the equity benchmark down included Grasim, Aurobindo Pharma, Ambuja Cements and ACC.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers of Indian equities worth Rs. 300 crore, according to provisional data published by the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
NTPC posted a net profit of Rs. 2,369 crore for the first quarter (Q1) ended June 30, 2016, up 4 percent from Rs. 2,276 crore in the corresponding period last year. Total income rose 11 percent to Rs. 19,062 crore from Rs. 17,093 crore in the year-ago period.
The NTPC stock closed 1.92 percent lower at Rs. 163.55 on Monday.
The rupee closed at Rs. 67.19 to the US dollar.
The 10-year bond yield was 7.16 percent; a note by India Ratings suggested the yield would remain around that level. "Bond gains are likely to halt and the currency will continue to face global risk shifts. The 10-year yield is likely to trade at 7.08 to 7.18 percent (7.10 percent at close on 19 August)," the agency said in a note.
