TCS

Information technology stocks came under pressure on July 15, with the Nifty IT index falling as much as 1% after global technology giant IBM reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results. Infosys, Persistent Systems, and TCS were among the biggest laggards on the index, each declining by up to 1% in early trade. The sell-off followed a sharp 25% overnight plunge in IBM's stock after the company reported preliminary second-quarter revenue that missed analysts' expectations, raising concerns about global enterprise technology spending. Despite the weakness in IT stocks, broader Indian markets remained resilient. At 9:35 am, the Sensex and Nifty were trading about 0.7% higher, supported by softer-than-expected US inflation data for June. Cooling inflation in the US has eased concerns over near-term interest rate hikes, reducing pressure on the dollar and boosting investor appetite for emerging market assets, including Indian equities. IBM reported preliminary second-quarter revenue of $17.2 billion, below analysts' estimates of $17.9 billion. Revenue from its infrastructure division, which includes mainframe computers, declined 7%, reflecting weaker demand. IBM Chief Executive Officer Arvind Krishna said the company had anticipated supply-chain disruptions would weigh on performance. However, it underestimated the extent to which customers would redirect spending from IBM's products to servers, storage, and memory in response to AI-driven component shortages and concerns over further price increases.