Bloomberg
Mumbai


Indian stocks declined, led by technology companies, after the nation’s second-biggest software exporter reduced its sales growth forecast.
Infosys dropped the most on the S&P BSE Sensex, pulling down a gauge of technology companies for a fourth time in five days.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Lupin, two of the nation’s four biggest healthcare companies, fell more than 1.5% each. Vedanta was the best performer on an index of metal producers, which climbed for a sixth day, the longest winning streak since May 2014.
The S&P BSE Sensex lost 0.7% to 26,904.11 at the close. The gauge completed its second weekly gain on Friday, tracking emerging-market equities, as investors became increasingly confident that the Federal Reserve will refrain from raising US interest rates until next year. The gains were fuelled by metal producers, energy companies and power utilities as global central banks show no desire to pull back on stimulus anytime soon.
“There’s some amount of negativity because Infosys cut its guidance,” Deven Choksey, managing director at brokerage KR Choksey Shares & Securities, said in an interview. “Some investors have started value-picking in metals and commodity stocks, which had gone down a lot.”
Infosys’ profit in the September quarter increased to Rs34bn ($525mn), beating the Rs32.8bn estimate in a Bloomberg survey. Still, the company cut its sales growth forecast for the year ending March to 6.4%-8.4% in dollar terms from an earlier guidance of 7.2% to 9.2%. The stock tumbled 3.8%, the most since August 24.
Tata Consultancy Services, the largest software exporter, declined 1.4% in a fifth day of declines before its results today. Wipro, the third-biggest, also fell 1.2%.
Sun Pharmaceutical, India’s most valuable drugmaker, decreased the most since September 28, while Lupin slid 2.2%. Cipla retreated 1.9%.
Vedanta jumped 7.1%, extending last week’s 24% rally. That pared this year’s loss to 48%. Hindalco Industries, the second-biggest aluminium producer, soared 5.6% to its highest level since August 18.
“We’ve been seeing a good rally in metal stocks for the last few days as they were beaten down and the global markets have stabilized,” Chokkalingam G, managing director at Equinomics Research in Mumbai, said. Chokkalingam is advising investors to buy shares of auto-parts makers and metals-and-mining companies.
Meanwhile the rupee was little changed at 64.7525 a dollar yesterday, prices from local banks compiled by Bloomberg show. The currency climbed 1.2% last week.
India’s 10-year sovereign bond yield climbed the most in a month ahead of a report that may show inflation accelerated from a nine-month low and as oil prices extended last week’s rally.
The yield on the government notes due May 2025 jumped four basis points, the most since September 7, to 7.58% in Mumbai, according to prices from the central bank’s trading system. It posted its highest close since September 29, when the Reserve Bank of India surprised investors with a larger-than-estimated cut in interest rates.
“It’s not the time to be complacent,” said Sandeep Bagla, a Mumbai-based associate director at Trust Investment Advisors. “Global commodity prices, especially oil, have started firming up, which isn’t good news.”