INDIA STOCKS-IT drags Indian shares down as mixed earnings, global trade risks dampen sentiment

By Vivek Kumar M

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Indian equity benchmarks hit their lowest levels in more than two months on Tuesday, led by information technology firms on mixed earnings, with global trade uncertainty and persistent foreign fund outflows keeping overall sentiment subdued.

The Nifty 50 .NSEI was down 0.38% at 25,487.15 and the BSE Sensex .BSESN fell 0.33% to 82,972.55 as of 10:11 a.m. IST.

All the 16 major sectors fell. The broader small-caps .NIFSMCP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 were down about 1% each.

The IT index .NIFTYIT slid 1.1% and was the top loser among major sectors. All constituents were down, with Wipro WIPR.NS down 1.2%, extending Monday's slump on weaker-than-expected fourth quarter outlook.

LTIMindtree LTIM.NS lost 5.6% after posting lower quarterly profit due to one-off impact from newly enacted labour codes.

"Early Q3 results do not indicate a recovery in earnings growth, but that is likely to change as results of automobile companies start flowing in," said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments.

Global sentiments were subdued, with MSCI's broadest index for Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS losing 0.3% after U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of fresh tariffs on eight European Union members over Greenland. MKTS/GLOB

Foreign portfolio investors offloaded Indian shares worth 32.63 billion rupees ($358.9 million) on Monday, per provisional data, extending January's outflows to about $3 billion and marking the heaviest monthly selling in five months.

"The volatility in the market is likely to continue in the near-term till some clarity emerges regarding the U.S.-Europe standoff on Greenland tariffs," said Vijayakumar.

Among other stocks, Ola Electric Mobility OLAE.NS fell 4.5% after its finance chief resigned.

Oberoi Realty OEBO.NS dropped 5.2% after it reported a drop in pre-sales for the December quarter.

Bajaj Electricals BJEL.NS soared 9.3% on its announcement that it would enter the wires business.