All sectoral indices ended lower. BSE Telecommunication tanked 2.18 per cent, metal (1.77 per cent), auto (1.70 per cent), energy (1.64 per cent), oil & gas (1.59 per cent), commodities (1.39 per cent) and financial services (1.37 per cent) were the major laggards.
Investors' wealth eroded by Rs 5.98 lakh crore on Thursday, tracking weak trends in equities where the BSE Sensex tumbled 1 per cent. Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined 1 per cent in tandem with weak global market trends amid growing tensions in the Middle East.
From the Sensex firms, Adani Ports declined 2.42 per cent. Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, Eternal, IndusInd Bank, Maruti, Tata Consultancy Services and UltraTech Cement were among the biggest laggards. Mahindra & Mahindra emerged as the only gainer in the pack.
Investors should tilt their portfolios towards domestic-facing defensive sectors, which should help provide stability and shield them from geopolitical and tariff risks.
Sentiments took a hit after broader Asian markets weakened, following a renewed sell-off on Wall Street on Tuesday as energy shares dropped after crude oil prices plunged to a 13-month low amid weak earnings and US-China trade disputes, fuelling worries about economic growth
The combined market capitalisation of the country's top five IT firms that are part of the BSE Sensex is down 24 per cent since January and their valuation has slipped to lowest levels in the past five years.
State Bank of India (SBI), the largest lender in the country, has launched a share sale to institutional investors to raise upto Rs 25,000 crore, the biggest qualified institutional placement (QIP) so far by an Indian firm, and has set a floor price of Rs 811.05, which is at a 2.5 per cent discount on Wednesday's closing price.
From the Sensex pack, Zomato, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma, Larsen & Toubro, HCL Tech and ITC were the major laggards. On the other hand, Tata Motors, Nestle, Titan, Hindustan Unilever and Reliance Industries were among the gainers.
Zomato emerged as the biggest gainer, followed by Reliance, Nestle, Asian Paints and Power Grid.
Fear of a recession in the US due to rising unemployment has added to the concerns of India's IT services sector, which was seeing some growth returning after Q1FY25 results. The Nifty IT closed 3.26 per cent down, as major IT services companies' stock value fell. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's largest IT services firm, saw its stock price fall 4 per cent during intraday trading.
The latest spike in the Vix is a sign that investors are visibly rattled by global developments and fear a further drawdown in stock prices, experts said.
'Expect FPIs to continue selling for several months until the rupee stabilises.'
United States President Donald Trump on Sunday warned of new and significantly higher tariffs on Chinese goods if Beijing does not withdraw a recent 34 per cent retaliatory tariff hike, threatening to end all ongoing talks with China.
Among Sensex shares, Zomato, NTPC, Adani Ports, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, Reliance Industries, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Tech Mahindra and Axis Bank were the major laggards. UltraTech Cement and HCL Technologies were the only gainers.
India and the US are expected to have smooth trade negotiations after US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a productive meeting during Modi's visit to the White House last month, Stephen A Schwarzman, chairman, chief executive officer, and co-founder of one of the world's largest alternative investment firms, Blackstone Group, said in Mumbai on Wednesday.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 20,170 crore ($2.4 billion) recently. This marked the fifth-highest weekly outflow from overseas funds since the beginning of 2008 and the largest since the last week of March 2020. Due to the Covid scare, FPIs had sold shares worth Rs 21,951 crore during that week, causing the market to decline by nearly 20 per cent.
Industry players said the sharp sell-off in February forced many companies to put off their listing plans
A global selloff over Europe's sovereign debt problems and weak US economic data had a bruising effect on Indian stock markets today.
From the 30-share blue-chip pack, Tata Steel, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, IndusInd Bank, Power Grid, Zomato, Adani Ports, Asian Paints, Mahindra & Mahindra and Reliance Industries were among the biggest laggards. Titan and Sun Pharma were the only gainers.
From the 30 Sensex pack, Mahindra & Mahindra, State Bank of India, Power Grid, Tata Steel, IndusInd Bank, Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro, NTPC, Bajaj Finance and Reliance were among the biggest laggards.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPI) have pulled out $3.5 billion from India's equity markets so far this month. The selling comes on the back of election-induced volatility and the rotation of flows from India to China, where stocks are available at half the valuations. If the selling pressure remains at the current level, this will be the highest FPI pullout since January 2023.
Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains to close in the red on Wednesday after a selloff in power, metal and consumer durable stocks amid a weak trend in global equities. However, a rally in the rupee against the US dollar and unabated foreign capital inflows helped the indices restrict the losses, traders said. In a largely range-bound session, the 30-share BSE Sensex ended 151.60 points or 0.25 per cent lower at 61,033.55.
'The economy is clearly at a very soft spot, and earnings growth is disappointing every day.' 'After three great years, the Indian economy has hit a rough patch.'
IndusInd Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding around 5 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank, HUL, Titan, Bajaj Finserv and HDFC. NSE Nifty plunged 263.20 points to 16,985.20.
The advance/decline ratio (ADR) - a gauge of market breadth - has remained negative (below 1) for a second consecutive month. In other words, the number of stocks declining is outpacing those rising, as a brutal selloff by overseas investors and lofty valuations weigh on sentiment. According to BSE data, the ADR for October stands at 0.98 for the second month in a row.
From the Sensex basket, Larsen & Toubro, Maruti, Reliance Industries, Nestle, Bharti Airtel, UltraTech Cement, Kotak Mahindra Bank and JSW Steel were among the major laggards. Bajaj Finance climbed nearly 1 per cent higher.
Crude oil prices could dip to the low $60s by the end of 2025 after rising to $80 a barrel in the last quarter (October-December) of 2024 - up nearly 10 per cent from current levels, suggest analysts at JP Morgan. The main players in West Asia, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have a strong incentive to keep the conflict contained, according to the JP Morgan report.
Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finserv, IndusInd Bank, Infosys, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Wipro, and Reliance Industries were among the other laggards. On the other hand, Larsen & Toubro, Hindustan Unilever, Power Grid, Asian Paints, Nestle and Mahindra & Mahindra were the major gainers.
After a brutal selloff since October, foreign portfolio investor (FPI) flows for the year-to-date (YTD) in 2024 have turned negative. In early September, YTD FPI investments peaked at a record Rs 22,000 crore ($2.6 billion). This wave of selling has also pulled down benchmark indices, with the Nifty's YTD returns declining to 11 per cent from their high of 21 per cent in September.
HCL Tech was the top loser in the Sensex pack, skidding over 4 per cent, followed by Tech Mahindra Dr Reddy's, Wipro, TCS, Titan and Infosys. NSE Nifty plunged 167.80 points to 17,110.15.
Investors' wealth tumbled Rs 86,741.74 crore on Wednesday, mirroring weakness in the global equity markets amid escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The BSE benchmark Sensex slumped 1,227.18 points to 55,020.10 during the day in line with a global selloff. It finally settled at 55,468.90, lower by 778.38 points or 1.38 per cent. Surging crude prices and foreign capital outflows also weighed on investor sentiment.
HCL Tech was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 3 per cent, followed by Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, Wipro, NTPC and Titan. Nifty advanced 187.05 points to 16,801.25.
Investors have lost a hefty Rs 11,45,267.43 crore in two days as the domestic equity market continued to face severe drubbing amid a global selloff. The BSE benchmark Sensex plunged 1,189.73 points or 2.09 per cent to close at 55,822.01 on Monday. During the day, it tanked 1,879.06 points to 55,132.68.
The week's losses wiped out investor wealth worth Rs 18.43 trillion, with the total market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms now at Rs 441 trillion.
ONGC was the top loser in the Sensex pack, followed by HCL Tech, SBI, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Hero MotoCorp and M&M.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have net sold domestic shares worth over $10 billion so far this month amid a shift to China, which not only offers attractive valuations compared to India but has also announced several measures to support the economy and the stock market in recent weeks. If the trend doesn't reverse, this will be the first time that overseas funds will yank out more than $10 billion from Indian equity markets in a month.
'Those satisfied with returns and not expecting further rally could be booking profits and also stopping SIPs.'
RIL plunged around 4% after scaling its life-time high of Rs 1,978.50 as investors rushed to book profits after the company's AGM. Bharti Airtel, ONGC, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finance and SBI were also among the laggards. On the other hand, shares of Infosys rallied around 6 per cent ahead of its quarterly earnings. HCL Tech, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank and HUL too ended with robust gains.
The narrative on China is changing post the recent stimulus measures, and it will be hard for global investors to ignore the Chinese markets.
With a global selloff over concerns of the US Federal Reserve's bond-buying tapering impacting the currencies of several emerging markets, the rupee has been the worst performer since Thursday.
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