Indian shares declined on Thursday as concerns of a prolonged high-interest rate regime weighed on sentiment. The Nifty 50 index was down 0. 40% at 17,682. 75 as of 10:44 am, while the S&P BSE Sensex lost 0. 37% to 60,123. 82. Auto stocks , in particular, were trading with losses, with the S&P BSE Auto index tumbling 1. 45% or 432. 99 points at 29,483. 85 during Thursday's late noon deals. The Nifty Auto index shed 1. 60% or 208. 35 points to 12,811. 15. TRENDING STORIES See All Premium Industry should be ready to be equal stakeholder in sta . . . Premium NSE warns stock investors: A man robbing money with pro . . . Premium IDFC First Bank hikes savings account interest rates, n . . . Premium This bank stock gives 113% return in 6 mths. ICICI Secu . . . Among the components of the S&P BSE Auto index, Ashok Leyland Ltd (down 0. 62%), Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (down 2. 90%), Tata Motors Ltd (down 1. 41%), Bosch Ltd (down 0. 88%), Hero MotoCorp Ltd (down 1. 27%), Eicher Motors Ltd (down 1. 66%), Balkrishna Industries Ltd (down 2. 62%), TVS Motor Company Ltd (down 1. 86%) were the top losers. Among gainers were Uno Minda Ltd (up 1. 12%), Bajaj Auto Ltd (up 0. 10%), and Cummins India Ltd (up 1. 18%). MINT PREMIUM See All Premium How China Inc is tackling the TikTok problem Premium The economics of censoring Roald Dahl Premium Top performing midcap stocks of 2023 so far Premium When Parag Parikh's wife stepped up to help him become . . . Auto sector outlook The auto sector has seen a storm of headwinds over the last 4-5 years, which resulted in a higher cost of ownership, lower affordability and restrictions in vehicle supplies due to chip shortages, said domestic research and broking firm Motilal Oswal. However, the brokerage said that most of the headwinds are now receding, aided by the absorption of cost inflation at the customer level, the realization of pent-up demand, and improvements in the supply chain. Given the improving narrative on demand, supply, and margins, the brokerage expects the auto sector’s earnings to grow significantly on a flat base of five years. A sharp 26% earnings upgrade for the Nifty Auto in 3QFY23 and positive management commentaries offer a stronger outlook for the sector. "Consequently, we are also witnessing an increase in the allocation to the Auto sector by the Top-20 mutual funds in India, which has risen to 8% in Jan’23, the highest in the last four years. We believe the worst of the Auto down-cycle is behind even as valuations are reasonable," it said in a report. On auto sector outlook, Saji John, Research analyst at Geojit Financial Services, said, “Increase in cost of the vehicle due to regulatory changes and lower rural participation on account of rising inflation and weak export dragging the overall outlook of the auto industry. Slow ramp up in electric mobility owing to a shortage in semi-conductors is further dampening the sector for new capacity expansion. We have a neutral stand on the sector, with a favourable outlook on CVs and tractors. " The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint . ABOUT THE AUTHOR Meghna Sen Meghna Sen is a deputy chief content producer at Livemint where she tracks companies, markets, news. She has 5+ years of experience with online and print publications. Email: meghna. sen@htdigital. in Read more from this author Know your inner investor Do you have the nerves of steel or do you get insomniac over your investments? Let’s define your investment approach. Take the test Catch all the Business News , Market News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates. More Less OPEN IN APP.