Sensex falls on Trump's visa comments, soaring crude

By Aby Jose Koilparambil

REUTERS - Indian shares fell on Monday, heading for their first drop in three sessions, as information technology stocks were hit by tough talk on visas by U.S. president-elect Donald Trump, while oil retailers declined after crude prices surged to their highest since mid-2015.

Sentiment was also dampened after industrial output unexpectedly fell in October by 1.9 percent, driven down by a contraction in manufacturing and mining sectors, according to data released late on Friday.

Falls tracked weaker global markets as the dollar continued to extend gains before a widely expected rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve later this week.

"Trump's comments on H1B visas have impacted sentiments now. IT was supposed to break out on the upside and many long positions were taken in the sector," said Sangeeth V., an institutional sales trader with Paterson Securities.

Sentiment is also weak after crude crossed the $50 mark following an output-cut deal involving OPEC and other producers, he said.

The broader NSE Nifty was down 0.7 percent at 8,203.70 by 0555 GMT, while the benchmark BSE Sensex was 0.55 percent lower at 26,600.15.

IT firms were among the leading decliners, with the Nifty IT index shedding as much as 1.51 percent, after Trump on Friday pledged to stop companies from abusing the visa process for foreign workers.

Infosys Ltd fell as much as 2.44 percent, while Tata Consultancy Services Ltd and Wipro Ltd shed up to 1.47 percent and 1.44 percent, respectively.

Oil retailers were down on concerns about the impact of higher crude prices. Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd fell as much as 2.51 percent, while Indian Oil Corp declined up to 2.23 percent.

But oil and gas explorer Oil & Natural Gas Corp rose as much as 2.54 percent, making it one of the top gainers on the NSE index, as it would benefit from higher crude prices.

(Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)