A top United States official is being called out for amplifying false information about the Indian stock market crashing in wake of the latest US immigration curbs. Anthony D’Esposito, Inspector General of the United States Department of Labor, reacted to a post on the social media platform X falsely claiming that “the Indian stock market completely COLLAPSED today after the Trump Administration suspended H-1B and foreign labor programs over fraud.”
“Ruh roh,” Anthony D'Esposito wrote — a response that many interpreted to be mocking Indians.
For some context
On Thursday, October 8, the US suspended eight IT firms, including Microsoft, Tata, Infosys and Wipro, from a programme to apply for green cards for foreign workers, contending that the practice has shut out Americans from the job market.
(Also read: Trump honours Satya Nadella the same day US suspends Microsoft’s green card sponsorship. Indian-origin CEO reacts)
For many foreign professionals in the US, the path from a temporary H-1B visa to a green card for permanent residency begins with a Labor Department process called PERM. On Thursday, the Trump administration closed that route at eight companies, six of them IT services companies based in India or with large operations there.
American right-wing political commentator Benny Johnson then took to X to claim that the Indian stock market had completely crashed because of this development.
{{/usCountry}}American right-wing political commentator Benny Johnson then took to X to claim that the Indian stock market had completely crashed because of this development.
{{/usCountry}}Johnson shared a graphic falsely claiming that the stock of Indian companies like Reliance, SBI, LIC and many more fell after the Trump administration’s latest curbs.
“The largest IT outsourcing firms in the world, Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini were removed from the Permanent Labor Certification Program,” Johnson wrote. “75% of Cognizant employees in the U.S. are Indian nationals. Infosys, Tata, Wipro and HCL are all based in India.”
(Also read: PERM, the paperwork behind a green card, now off-limits at Infosys, TCS, Wipro and five other employers)
Here’s the truth
Anthony D’Esposito, Inspector General of the United States Department of Labor, reacted to Johnson’s post on X, sparking a controversy over amplification of false narrative.
In fact, as a community note under Johnson’s post pointed out, the Indian stock market had closed hours before the Trump administration’s October 8 announcement.
While the Sensex did fall on October 8, that was attributed to rising oil prices, RBI rate hike and FII outflows.
(Also read: Sensex, Nifty open higher day after sharp plunge, but gains may be limited)
On Friday, October 9, benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded in early trade after two days of sharp decline, led by a rally in TCS and other IT stocks.
The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 292 points to 71,876.10 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty was up 84.60 points to 22,310.40.
From the 30 Sensex firms, Tata Consultancy Services surged over 4 per cent after reporting a 15 per cent jump in net profit to ₹13,884 crore and pointing to continued growth momentum going forward.
Infosys, ITC, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports and HDFC Bank were also among the gainers.
(With inputs from PTI)