The latest outlook of Accenture on Friday created such a stir in the Indian stock market that huge selling was seen in the shares of IT sector. As soon as the market opened, investors lost about ₹ 2 lakh crore and a sharp decline was recorded in big stocks like TCS, Infosys, Wipro. Accenture’s weak guidance raised fears that the slowdown in global technology spending could last for a long time.
Why did the market panic due to Accenture’s warning?
Global IT and consulting company Accenture has reduced its FY2026 revenue growth forecast. The company said that companies around the world are showing interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI), but are not increasing the total technology budget. This means that instead of spending on new projects, companies are shifting their existing budget to AI projects. This is what troubled investors the most.
There was an outcry in IT shares
After the announcement of Accenture, there was a sharp fall in the shares of Indian IT companies. Infosys shares fell by about 7.5%. Besides, TCS fell by 6%, Tech Mahindra by over 6%, HCL Tech by 3% and Wipro by 5%. Midcap IT stocks like Coforge, Mphasis, Persistent Systems, Tata Elxsi and KPIT Technologies also witnessed heavy selling. Almost all IT companies were among the top losers of Nifty 500.
Investors lost ₹2 lakh crore
This big decline in the IT sector affected the entire stock market. As soon as the market opened, the total market cap of BSE listed companies declined by about ₹2 lakh crore. Investors fear that if a global company like Accenture is talking about weak demand, then the coming quarters will not be easy for Indian IT companies too.
Why increased concern for Indian IT companies?
The biggest shock in the Accenture report was related to outsourcing business. The company’s outsourcing bookings declined 15% year-on-year. A large part of the Indian IT sector’s earnings come from outsourcing contracts. In such a situation, this indicates that foreign companies are currently avoiding spending on big technology projects.
Hope remains from AI, but the wait is long
However, Accenture also said that the demand for AI related projects is continuously increasing and the company is preparing for big investment in this field. The company is planning to make acquisitions worth about $9 billion this year. Yet investors’ concern is that the benefits of AI are currently visible more in discussion and less in earnings. Unless global companies spend openly on new technology projects, the Indian IT sector may remain under pressure.
Will there be pressure in future also?
Brokerage firms believe that global economic uncertainty, tensions in West Asia and weak corporate spending may remain a challenge for the IT sector in the coming months.
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