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?
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.
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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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
The milestone crowns a record year for the domestic primary market where IPO mobilisation is set to cross Rs 1.7 trillion.
The last time these two indexes recorded a negative performance on a calendar year basis was in CY19.
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.
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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.
Industry players said the sharp sell-off in February forced many companies to put off their listing plans
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Stock markets rebounded on Friday with the benchmark Sensex closing higher by 316 points after heavy buying in banking and metal shares amid optimism over trade deal progresses and India's participation in Pax Silica.
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.
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.
'The frenzy for gold is primarily due to the uncertainty surrounding the tariff war.'
Stock markets closed higher for the second straight session on Tuesday, driven by gains in bank, IT and capital goods shares.
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.
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.
Market sentiment is likely to remain cautious as investors position themselves for the upcoming Union Budget and the US Fed's interest rate decision, where expectations are muted.
'We continue to view India as a standout within EM.'
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.
The last time this happened was in 1996.
Those who cannot bear significant downturns (as much as 40 per cent) or have a short horizon should exit entirely.
Retail investors' equity portfolios have significantly underperformed benchmark indices over the past 16 to 18 months.
If the index is unable to sustain above 24,500 levels, technically it can then slip to its 200-DMA placed at 23,365 levels.
Over 50 per cent, or 660 stocks, from the BSE 1000 index recorded negative returns during CY25.
Passive funds tracking the National Stock Exchange Nifty Next 50 Index have seen their assets under management (AUM) more than double in the past year. The index's growing popularity can be attributed to its robust 50 per cent return over the same period. Currently, the AUM of funds tracking the Nifty Next 50 index stands at nearly Rs 30,000 crore.
Among Sensex firms, Bharat Electronics rose the most by 4.26 per cent. HCL Tech gained 2.57 per cent, Bajaj Finance by 2.19 per cent, TCS by 1.99 per cent, Tech Mahindra by 1.88 per cent and Infosys by 1.85 per cent. Gains in Axis Bank and State Bank of India also supported the rally. However, Mahindra & Mahindra emerged as the biggest loser, falling by 2.47 per cent. Maruti dropped 1.53 per cent and Tata Motors by nearly 1 per cent due to profit-taking. UltraTech, Eternal and Power Grid were also among the laggards.
Largecap equities are less volatile than mid- and smallcap stocks, making them suitable for risk-averse investors.
Among Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Eternal, UltraTech Cement, Larsen & Toubro, Maruti and Bharti Airtel were the major gainers. However, Hindustan Unilever, Sun Pharma, ITC and Asian Paints were among the laggards.
Net inflows into equity mutual fund (MF) schemes scaled a record high in July as the market correction and a raft of new fund offerings (NFOs) lifted lump-sum collections. Active equity schemes raked in a net Rs 42,702 crore in July, going past the previous high of Rs 41,156 crore in December 2024. Systematic investment plan (SIP) inflows continued to scale new highs, rising over 4 per cent month-on-month (M-o-M) to Rs 28,464 crore.
