The equity benchmark indices traded lower on Monday, as investors assessed the results of top private lenders HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, while crude prices above $108 a barrel weigh on risk sentiment.
At around 11 a.m., the Sensex was down 370.61 points or 0.5 percent at 74,358.66, while the broader Nifty declined to 23,065.90, down 80.25 points or 0.35 percent.
1) Selling in bank shares: HDFC Bank shares declined 2 percent, emerging among the top losers on the Nifty 50 after the private sector lender reported its second-quarter FY27 results over the weekend. Concerns over pressure on net interest margins and modest earnings growth weighed on sentiment, even as several major brokerages maintained bullish recommendations on the stock.
The decline came amid broader weakness in banking stocks, with the Bank Nifty slipping 0.5 percent.
2) Weak global cues: Asian equities traded lower, although they recovered some of their early losses, as concerns over the enormous funding requirements for artificial intelligence investments weighed on technology stocks ahead of a busy earnings week.