Currencies pose a risk to Indian IT services, says Deutsche

Employees work on the floor of the outsourcing company WNS in Mumbai March 19, 2012.

Reuters Market Eye - Deutsche Bank warns India's technology services sector could be hurt by currencies, offsetting a steady improvement in corporate spending outlook.

The impact from movements in the euro, sterling, and Australian dollar against the U.S. dollar could reduce U.S. revenue by 1.7-2.4 percentage points for Indian IT companies, Deutsche estimates.

The rupee would need to depreciate to 56 per dollar or below to have any meaningful impact on the appreciation of the U.S. dollar against other key billing currencies, the investment bank notes.

The research house says while Infosys Ltd (INFY.NS) would be least affected by cross-currency moves, given its lower exposure to billing in sterling and euro, HCL Technologies Ltd (HCLT.NS) would benefit the most from the depreciation of the rupee versus the U.S. dollar.

(Reporting by Abhishek Vishnoi)