India’s BSE Sensex finished about 0.2% down at 73,832.6 on Thursday, halting a two-day advance, amid caution due to continued Middle East tensions and concerns over unabated foreign fund outflows. At the same time, weakness in the tech sector persisted, on fears of AI-led disruptions and a prolonged period of high US interest rates. The US and Iran have exchanged strikes across the Middle East for a second consecutive day, with President Trump vowing more attacks if Tehran delays agreeing to a peace deal. In equities, Infosys and HCL Tech led losses, falling 2.7% and 2%, respectively. Other laggards included Adani Ports (-1.9%), Eternal (-1.8%), Bajaj Finance (-1.6%), BEL (-1.5%), Trent (-1.5%) and L&T (-1.5%). On the upside, ICICI Bank, M&M, Kotak Bank and Sun Pharma posted the biggest gains, ranging between 0.7%-1.9%.