Hong Kong has regained its spot as the world's fourth-largest market following a broad market rout in Indian equities. Currently, the Chinese territory's market capitalisation stands at $4.9 trillion versus India's $4.75 trillion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. In January, the domestic equity markets' market capitalisation had surpassed that of Hong Kong following a spectacular rally in the small- and midcap stocks.
Overall market reaction to the Budget was neutral. Investors absorbed the changes to the tax rates (positive for salaried class) and capital gains taxes (CGTs, negative due to the removal of indexation and increases. Other proposals largely pertain to supporting rural development, buybacks taxed as dividends, Custom duty changes that impact multiple sectors, higher outlays for clean energy, etc. There's some moderation in the growth of capex outlay across defence, fer
'India's fundamentals are a lot better (than those of other emerging market economies).' 'India will suffer (witness a fall in its stock market) what I call the second order effect.' 'And the second order will happen when these funds (belonging to macro and hedge fund investors and which have leveraged Japanese yen-carry trades), because they lose money elsewhere as lot of their positions were financed by borrowing Japanese yen, will have to book profits in investment destinations where they are making money, including in markets like India.' 'They (these investors) will have to effectively sell in countries like India and which is the consequence (the crash in equity markets) that Indian markets might see.'
In addition to regulatory actions against small and midcaps, tighter liquidity conditions are another headwind that stocks are facing this month. Market observers say advance tax outflows and capital gains-related adjustments will weigh on the markets in the near term.
Market selloff erodes nearly Rs 12 lakh crore of investor wealth. On the BSE, 1,279 scrips declined, while 193 advanced and 40 remained unchanged.
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.
Equity trading volumes, both in the cash and derivatives segments, dropped in March amid wild swings in stock prices. The average daily trading volume for the cash segment (National Stock Exchange, or NSE, and BSE combined) fell by 16.3 per cent to Rs 1.07 trillion - the lowest since November 2023. Market players said the drop could have been sharper if not for the large block deals in companies such as ITC, Tata Consultancy Services, and IndiGo seen during the month.
Mutual funds (MFs) reinforced their record monthly inflows in October with an investment of Rs 87,000 crore (up to October 29), softening the downside pressure on domestic markets. Their prior record for monthly inflows was Rs 48,139 crore in May. This unprecedented monthly buying partially countered record monthly sales by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) of Rs 1.1 trillion last month.
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.
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.
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.
Data from Amfi shows that NAV of every one in two BAFs declined 1.5% or less on Monday compared to a 3.13% decline in Nifty 500.
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.
'On the weekly chart, the Nifty 50 index has formed a bearish candle and remains below all short-term moving averages.'
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.
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.
Around six weeks ago, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, India's largest drugmaker, suffered a setback, which led to a selloff in the share. The US District Court of New Jersey granted Incyte's request for a preliminary injunction against Sun Pharma's launch of Leqselvi, a drug that treats alopecia.
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance (IPRU) disappointed the market even though some analysts said the Q3FY25 results were in line. Most analysts cut margin estimates. The insurer reported M9FY25 growth of 8.5 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in value of new business (VNB) premium to Rs 1,575 crore, while total annual premium equivalent (APE) grew 27.2 per cent to Rs 6,910 crore.
They believe that long-term story is intact.
Brokerages believe that the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) stronger-than-expected showing in state elections reduces political risks for the domestic markets going into 2024. However, after the short-term excitement, the focus will soon shift to earnings, global liquidity conditions, and the interest rate trajectory. "BJP's win in the three state elections is much better than what exit polls suggested and reinforces the consensus expectations of a Modi win in the 2024 national elections with a greater likelihood of 300+ seats for the BJP.
IndusInd Bank was the top laggard, tumbling over 7 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance, M&M, Tech Mahindra, TCS and Tata Steel.
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.
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.
IndusInd Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, tanking over 8 per cent, followed by Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, M&M, Maruti, Axis Bank and ONGC. On the other hand, Kotak Bank, Infosys and TCS were the gainers.
IndusInd Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding over 3 per cent, followed by Tata Steel, Bajaj Auto, HCL Tech, Sun Pharma and Tech Mahindra. On the other hand, HDFC twins and Bajaj Finance were the gainers.
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.
The broader NSE Nifty sank 252.55 points, or 2.14 per cent, to 11,558.60.
'Only if the Budget springs some surprises we may see a halt in the selling.'
Top losers in the Sensex pack included ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank, HDFC, Infosys and SBI. On the other hand, HUL, Hero MotoCorp, PowerGrid, Maruti and Asian Paints were among the gainers. NSE Nifty slumped 230.35 points or 2.50 per cent to close at 8,967.05.
HDFC was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding over 2 per cent, followed by Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, M&M, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank and Titan.
Benchmark indices finished on a weak note on Thursday, extending their previous day's decline amid a negative trend in global equity markets after the US Fed hiked interest rates by 75 basis points. The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 69.68 points or 0.11 per cent to settle at 60,836.41. During the day, it tanked 420.95 points or 0.69 per cent to 60,485.14.
'Those satisfied with returns and not expecting further rally could be booking profits and also stopping SIPs.'
ICICI Bank was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, sinking over 10 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance, HDFC, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank and Maruti. Bharti Airtel and Sun Pharma were the gainers in the BSE index. NSE Nifty suffered a heavy loss of 566.40 points, or 5.74 per cent, to settle at 9,293.50.
Eighty per cent, or 60 of the 75 companies that made their debut on the mainboard this financial year, ended their listing day with gains.
Market players attribute the rally in small and midcaps to flows from retail investors and domestic institutions.
Domestic equities will be mainly driven by global market trends, foreign institutional investors' movement and developments around new Covid variant Omicron this week, according to analysts. Markets traded under pressure last week following weak global cues and overall investor sentiment remained downbeat throughout the week, they observed. "Global markets, Omicron variant, dollar index and FIIs' behaviour will be key factors to drive the market this week," said Santosh Meena, head of research, Swastika Investmart Ltd. One major event last week was US Federal Reserve's announcement that it will end bond-buying from March, and it also signalled starting rate hike cycle thereafter.
Investors' wealth on Thursday tumbled over Rs 2.81 lakh crore as stocks declined in line with selloff in global equities. The 30-share BSE benchmark index tanked 581.21 points or 1 per cent to settle at 57,276.94. During the day, it cracked 1,418.79 points to 56,439.36. In tandem with weak trend in equities, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms tanked Rs 2,81,147.38 crore to Rs 2,59,97,419.48 crore.
Recovering from a two-session carnage, equity benchmark Sensex rebounded 887 points on Tuesday, led by gains in index majors ICICI Bank, HDFC twins and Infosys amid a positive trend in global markets. According to experts, global equity markets are slightly relieved after studies pertaining to the Omicron strain of COVID-19 suggest that even though it is fast spreading, it is largely milder than the Delta variant. The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 886.51 points or 1.56 per cent higher at 57,633.65.
'This is a good time to restructure your portfolio because the sectors and stocks that performed in the last bull market may not perform as much now.'
Investors' wealth on Friday tumbled by over Rs 4.65 lakh crore as markets suffered a heavy selloff following weak global trends and continued selling by foreign institutional investors. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex plunged 889.40 points or 1.54 per cent to close at 57,011.74. During the day, it tumbled 950.16 points to 56,950.98. The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies declined by Rs 465,570.82 crore to Rs 2,59,37,277.66 crore amid weak sentiments.
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