Hospital stocks have emerged as a strong theme in 2026, outperforming benchmark indices due to robust earnings growth, improved occupancy, higher average revenue per occupied bed, and aggressive expansion plans by major chains.
Investing in gold trumped most other asset classes in terms of compounded annualised returns over the long term, suggests a report by FundsIndia.
Unless the primary market momentum slows, smallcap stocks will stay subdued.
Net investments into equity mutual fund schemes in India remained elevated at approximately 38,440 crore in April, despite a slight dip from March's high and a 3% month-on-month decline in Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) inflows.
Indian equities on Dalal Street saw volatility as global market trends and fresh tariff concerns linked to Donald Trump impacted investor sentiment. Track Sensex, Nifty50 movement and key market drivers for Feb 24, 2026.
'Selling could further intensify and take the index towards 22,800-22,750 in the near-term.'
Investors now have 27 passive smallcap funds to choose from 17 index funds and 10 ETFs.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Tuesday said it has halved the lot size for trading derivatives contracts for the Nifty 50 index to 25 and also reduced the lot sizes of the Nifty Financial Services and Nifty Midcap indices as part of its periodic revision. "All contracts, i.e. weekly, monthly, quarterly, and half-yearly expires available for trading from the trade date of April 26, 2024, onwards will be with the revised market lot size," the NSE said, referring to applicability of the change for Nifty 50. The lot size in the derivatives segment refers to the fixed number of shares in a unit or group for which contracts are traded.
The BSE Sensex and the Nifty 50 declined around 4.5 per cent each since the start of the West Asia conflict.
Indian IT stocks have seen a significant decline of up to 33 per cent year-to-date in 2026, largely due to artificial intelligence (AI) disrupting traditional outsourcing models, leading analysts to predict a challenging FY27 for the sector despite some cushion from rupee depreciation.
'Retail portfolios were going nowhere even as headline indices moved higher, prompting investors to sell holdings and shift money to IPOs, attracted by listing-day gains.'
From the Sensex pack, Eternal, Maruti Suzuki India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tech Mahindra, Titan, HDFC Bank, PowerGrid, Bajaj Finserv, HCL Technologies, Bajaj Finance and Larsen & Toubro were among the gainers. On the other hand, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Asian Paints, UltraTech Cement, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Tata Steel, Adani Ports, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Tata Consultancy Services and Reliance Industries were the only laggards.
The number of rights issues more than doubled and hit a 28-year high in 2025, even as qualified institutional placements (QIPs) shrank amid a broader market correction and the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (Sebi's) revised framework for rights issues.
Among the Sensex shares, Infosys, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, Adani Ports, Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Steel, BEL and Power Grid were among the lead gainers. Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finserv, and Titan were the among the laggards.
Even as net flows into smallcap funds in March turned negative, for the first time in 30 months, they remained a big draw for new investors. The smallcap fund category saw a net of 360,000 investment accounts, or folios, getting added last month, the second-most among all active equity categories. Smallcap funds' continued traction could be driven by their strong performance across timeframes, say experts.
The last time these two indexes recorded a negative performance on a calendar year basis was in CY19.
Indian benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty experienced declines due to a sharp rally in crude oil prices, continuous foreign fund outflows, and geopolitical uncertainties. Regulatory developments in the banking sector, particularly the implementation of the Expected Credit Loss (ECL) framework, also contributed to the selling pressure.
Equity markets fell on Monday, with benchmark indices recording their worst session in over two months amid caution ahead of the US Federal Reserve's (Fed's) policy announcement and renewed uncertainty over the US-India trade deal. Sustained selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) also weighed on sentiment.
Industry players said the sharp sell-off in February forced many companies to put off their listing plans
Indian benchmark stock indices, Sensex and Nifty, closed nearly 1 per cent lower following the collapse of US-Iran negotiations, which heightened concerns of a prolonged conflict in West Asia and drove crude oil prices sharply higher.
Indian equities are experiencing their sharpest rebound in years, with the BSE 500 index rallying 12.1 per cent so far this month, echoing Covid-era recoveries despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and earnings risks.
Net inflows into equity mutual fund schemes moderated in FY26, falling by 27 per cent to about 3 trillion till February, as choppy markets and global uncertainties prompted investors to shift towards safer options like hybrid funds and gold ETFs.
Ask rediffGURU Naveenn Kummar your insurance mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
Among major Sensex gainers Bajaj Finserv rose the most by 1.42 per cent, Axis Bank gained 0.80 per cent, Infosys by 0.72 per cent, Mahindra & Mahindra by 0.60 per cent, Tata Motors by 0.55 per cent, Bajaj Finance by 0.53 per cent and Tata Steel by 0.52 per cent. Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, HCL Technologies, Bharti Airtel, Maruti Suzuki India, Trent Ltd and Tata Consultancy Services were the losers.
Is the current rally telegraphing a durable peace plan in West Asia, boosted by United States (US) President Donald Trump's incoherent and contradictory posts on social media?
Among Sensex firms, Tata Consultancy Services, Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Eternal, Infosys, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Bajaj Finserv were the major gainers. However, Tata Steel, Adani Ports, Power Grid and Titan were among the laggards.
The milestone crowns a record year for the domestic primary market where IPO mobilisation is set to cross Rs 1.7 trillion.
The sharp rally in the midcap stocks has made valuations expensive, and there is room for a correction, wrote Christopher Wood, global head of equity strategy at Jefferies in his latest note to investors, GREED & fear. The midcap index, Wood said, now trades at 24.1x 12-month forward earnings compared with 18.7x for the Nifty. Rising crude oil prices, he believes, are another worry for India, which imports nearly 80 per cent of its annual crude oil requirement.
Among Sensex firms, NTPC, Axis Bank, Power Grid, Bharti Airtel, Eternal and Sun Pharma were the major gainers. However, Infosys, Titan, UltraTech Cement and Hindustan Unilever were among the laggards.
Among Sensex firms, Trent, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv, Mahindra & Mahindra, Power Grid, Tata Consultancy Services and Bajaj Finance were the major laggards. However, Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro, State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the major gainers.
After a strong run in the midcap and smallcap indices, which surged 46 per cent and 43 per cent, respectively, on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) during Samvat 2080, analysts suggest that the rally in these segments may pause to catch its breath in Samvat 2081.
Indian investors have seen their wealth erode by a staggering Rs 48.29 lakh crore since the West Asia war began on February 28, leading to a significant downturn in the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty, driven by geopolitical tensions and rising crude oil prices.
Those who cannot bear significant downturns (as much as 40 per cent) or have a short horizon should exit entirely.
New-age stocks to buy: Most new-age stocks have turned out to be wealth destroyers in stock markets, so far, in calendar year 2025. Shares of Ola Electric Mobility, for instance, have plunged nearly 50 per cent in the first half of CY 2025, while those of Swiggy, PB Fintech, Paytm, and Eternal (Zomato) have crashed between 6 per cent and 25 per cent, ACE Equity data shows.
Benchmark BSE Sensex fell 558 points on Thursday amid heavy selling in IT shares, as concerns over AI-led disruptions and waning hopes of a Fed rate cut after firm US economic data weighed on investor sentiment.
The equity benchmark indices posted their strongest weekly gains in years, driven by bargain hunting and optimism over a reversal in foreign portfolio investor (FPI) outflows. The Sensex rose 558 points, or 0.7 per cent, on Friday to close at 76,906, while the Nifty 50 gained 160 points to end at 23,350. Over the past five sessions, both indices advanced around 4.3 per cent - marking the Sensex's best weekly performance since July 22, 2022, and the Nifty 50's strongest rally since February 5, 2021.
After a year of modest returns, equity investors may anticipate gains of 10-15 per cent in Samvat 2082, which began on October 21. Although valuations have moderated from their peaks a year earlier, they remain above long-term averages, potentially limiting sharp upsides.
The last time this happened was in 1996.
Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty experienced a significant decline, primarily driven by a selloff in IT stocks due to concerns about AI disruption and renewed worries over global trade.
'The frenzy for gold is primarily due to the uncertainty surrounding the tariff war.'
