Benchmarks stumble as $100,000 H-1B toll weighs on IT shares
The headline equity benchmarks ended lower for the second consecutive session, weighed down by the Trump administration?s decision to impose a one-time fee of $100,000 on new H-1B visa applicants. The move, seen as a setback for India?s IT sector which relies heavily on these visas, had a bigger impact on sentiment than the recent GST revisions. The Nifty closed near the 25,200 mark, dragged down by IT stocks, while pharmaceutical shares with significant U.S. exposure also remained under pressure.
The S&P BSE Sensex declined 466.26 points or 0.56% to 82,159.97. The Nifty 50 index lost 124.70 points or 0.49% to 25,202.35. In two consecutive trading sessions, the Sensex fell 1.02% and the Nifty declined 0.87%.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.78% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 0.71%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1775 shares rose and 2511 shares fell. A total of 176 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 5.91% to 10.56.
Trump?s H-1B fee rule sparks panic:
The Trump administration has issued a key clarification regarding its new visa policy, confirming that the controversial $100,000 H-1B visa fee will be a one-time charge applicable only to new applicants. The policy, which came into effect at midnight on Sunday, 21 September 2025, does not impact petitions filed before this date?offering limited relief to the rattled tech industry.
Despite the clarification, the sudden announcement triggered widespread panic among Indian professionals in the U.S. on H-1B visas. Confusion and uncertainty gripped many, with some canceling last-minute travel plans and others already in India scrambling to return. Immigration attorneys and companies quickly raised red flags, especially for H-1B holders and their families currently outside the U.S. for work or vacation. American lawmakers also criticized the move, calling it ?reckless? and potentially damaging to the country?s tech-driven economy.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper added 0.17% to 6.500 from the previous close of 6.489.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 88.3100 compared with its close of 88.1600 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 3 October 2025 settlement jumped 1.59% to Rs 1,11,611.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.17% to 97.46.
The United States 10-year bond yield shed 0.22% to 4.131.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for November 2025 settlement fell 24 cents or 0.36% to $66.44 a barrel.
Global Markets:
The U.S. Dow Jones index futures were down 147 points on Thursday, indicating a negative opening for Wall Street.
Most European shares declined on Monday, as investors are awaited for euro zone consumer confidence data.
Asian indices ended mixed. China?s Central Bank kept the loan prime rates (LPR) unchanged for the fourth month in a row. The decision to stand pat comes after the U.S. Federal Reserve lowered its rates by 25 basis points last week.
The People?s Bank of China kept the one-year LPR unchanged at 3.0% while the five-year LPR remained at 3.5%, according to a statement Monday. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, opens new tab on worker visas kept sentiment in check.
US stocks notched fresh highs on Friday amid a record-setting rally as the US and China advanced trade talks and the ?magnificent seven? tech stocks continued to climb.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4% and the S&P 500 jumped nearly 0.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite led gains, adding about 0.7%, as Apple stock rallied on optimism over its new iPhones hitting store shelves.
Investors on Friday were focused on details from Trump's conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The US president said in a post on Truth Social following the talks, We made progress on many very important issues including Trade, Fentanyl, the need to bring the War between Russia and Ukraine to an end, and the approval of the TikTok Deal.
Stocks in Spotlight:
IT stocks fell sharply on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing a hefty one-time fee of $100,000 on new H-1B visa applications.
The Nifty IT index dropped 2.95% to 35,500.15, with frontline technology companies leading the slide.
Mphasis (down 4.7%), LTIMindtree (down 4.6%), Coforge (down 4.46%), Persistent Systems (down 4.3%), Tech Mahindra (down 3%), Tata Consultancy Services (down 2.96%), Infosys (down 2.55%), Wipro (down 2.11%), HCL Technologies (down 1.73%) slumped.
The H-1B program's annual quota of 85,000 visas, including 65,000 under the regular pool and 20,000 for U.S. master?s degree holders, remains unchanged. The new fee will apply only to fresh applicants and will not affect existing visa holders or renewals.
Hexaware Technologies declined 7.08%. The company stated that, based on its current assessment, the recent fee hikes announced by U.S. authorities for new visa petitions are expected to have an immaterial impact on the company. The company further said that it has been reducing its dependency on H-1B filings in the last few years. As a matter of fact, the company has not made any fresh applications under the H-1B cap in April 2025.
Netweb Technologies India surged 7.78% after the company announced that it has secured a purchase order valued at approximately Rs 450 crore for the supply and deployment of its advanced Tyrone AI GPU-accelerated systems.
PTC Industries advanced 1.66% after the company's wholly owned subsidiary, Aerolloy Technologies, announced the commissioning of a Vacuum Arc Remelting (VAR) 400 furnace. The facility is located at the Aerospace Precision Castings Plant in the Strategic Materials Technology Complex (SMTC) within the UP Defence Industrial Corridor in Lucknow.
Rossell Techsys gained 5.13% after the company has signed a long-term Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract with Boeing for manufacturing electrical panel assemblies for the T-7A Red Hawk. Under the agreement, the company can produce up to 1,200 shipsets through 2033. The T-7A Red Hawk is Boeing?s fully digitally designed, built and tested training aircraft.
Rajesh Exports dropped 4.13% after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 9.53 crore in Q1 FY26 compared with net profit of Rs 11.86 crore in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations surged 117.9% to Rs 1,31,541.80 crore in Q1 FY26 as compared with Rs 60,355 crore in Q1 FY25.
Likhami Consulting hit a lower circuit of 2% after the company announced that Babu Lal Jain has resigned from his position as managing director and chief executive officer, effective at the close of business on 30 September 2025.
Sarveshwar Foods rose 1.07% after the company has announced a significant international order worth Rs 329 million from Monarda Commodities, a Singapore-based trading firm.
NBCC (India) rallied 3.74% after the company has secured multiple work orders worth approximately Rs 117 crore from the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO).
Unicommerce Esolutions rose 5.86% after the company launched its GST Guidance Tool, designed to help e-commerce sellers navigate the latest GST revisions that came into effect on 22 September 2025.
IPO Updates:
The initial public offer (IPO) of Ganesh Consumer Products received bids for 10,20,878 shares as against 89,12,228 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:39 IST on Monday (22 September 2025). The issue was subscribed 0.11 times.
The issue opened for bidding on Monday (22 September 2025) and it will close on Wednesday (24 September 2025). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 306 and 322 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 46 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
The initial public offer (IPO) of Atlanta Electricals received bids for 62,57,745 shares as against 65,38,439 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:39 IST on Monday (22 September 2025). The issue was subscribed 0.96 times.
The issue opened for bidding on Monday (22 September 2025) and it will close on Wednesday (24 September 2025). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 718 and 754 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 19 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
The initial public offer (IPO) of GK Energy received bids for 13,93,41,104 shares as against 2,21,80,828 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:39 IST on Monday (22 September 2025). The issue was subscribed 6.28 times.
The issue opened for bidding on Friday (19 September 2025) and it will close on Tuesday (23 September 2025). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 145 and 153 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 98 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
The initial public offer (IPO) of Saatvik Green Energy received bids for 1,54,38,048 shares as against 1,42,71,970 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:39 IST on Monday (22 September 2025). The issue was subscribed 1.08 times.
The issue opened for bidding on Friday (19 September 2025) and it will close on Tuesday (23 September 2025). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 442 and 465 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 44 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
The initial public offer (IPO) of Ivalue Infosolutions received bids for 2,37,81,050 shares as against 1,31,17,272 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:39 IST on Monday (22 September 2025). The issue was subscribed 1.81 times.
The issue opened for bidding on Thursday (18 September 2025) and it will close on Monday (22 September 2025). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 284 and 299 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 50 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
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