(Reuters) -India’s benchmark indexes opened lower on Thursday, weighed down by consumer stocks after index heavyweight Hindustan Unilever projected near-term margin pressure due to slowing urban demand.
The Nifty 50 was down 0.27% at 23,093.5 points as of 9:18 a.m. IST, while the BSE Sensex shed 0.23% to 76,228.06.
Twelve of the 13 major sectors declined. Consumer stocks fell 1%, dragged by a 3% drop in Hindustan Unilever. The stock was the top loser on the Nifty 50 index.
While the company posted a marginal rise in in December-quarter profit, the consumer goods maker projected near-term margins at the lower end of its forecast range due to a moderation in urban demand.
The broader, more domestically-focussed smallcaps fell 0.3%, while midcaps traded flat.
The IT index was the only outlier among major sectors, rising 1.1% due to an 8% jump in Coforge after it posted a higher quarterly revenue, while Persistent Systems gained 7% after reporting a rise in December-quarter profit.
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Sonia Cheema)
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