After a record-breaking year, India's automobile industry is entering 2026 on a relatively strong footing, with sales growth expected in the 6-8 per cent range. The outlook is underpinned by policy support, including GST rationalisation, easing monetary conditions, and income tax relief, which together are likely to improve affordability and sustain consumer demand across vehicle segments.
'The universe of PSU stocks is huge and diverse.' 'Investors should bet on specific sectors and stocks from the basket as most of them may continue to consolidate after years of outperformance.'
Investors who constantly hop between 'top-performing' funds often end up earning far lower returns than the very funds they invest in -- simply because they enter late and exit early. Best investors don't chase returns, they chase discipline, says Ramalingam Kalirajan.
The stock of Bharti Airtel, India's largest listed telecommunications (telecom) services provider, recently hit an all-time high on expectations of higher average revenue per user (Arpu), a stable market setup, and fresh revenue lines.
Manufacturers of passenger vehicles (PVs) in the first half of the calendar year (2025) reported a modest 0.5 per cent year-on-year increase in wholesale dispatches, while retail sales grew 2.5 per cent for the same period, reflecting a calibrated approach by automakers amid elevated dealership inventories and cautious consumer sentiment. According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam), dispatches rose marginally to 2.16 million units, up from 2.15 million units a year earlier.
SBI was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, spurting over 2 per cent, followed by TCS, Tech Mahindra, HUL, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank and Titan. On the other hand, IndusInd Bank, PowerGrid, Bharti Airtel, Asian Paints and HDFC Bank were among the laggards.
The stock of mid-tier information technology (IT) major Persistent Systems has been one of the outperformers in the IT pack with a return of 5.3 per cent over the last year, while its peer index, the Nifty IT, is down 16.2 per cent over the same period. The strong September quarter (Q2FY26) result and upgrades by brokerages are positive but its ability to sustain growth momentum in a weak macroeconomic environment will be key for future gains. At the current levels, the stock is trading at a premium valuation of 38 times its FY27 earnings estimates.
Data since 2005 show that the five years with the highest rainfall saw average market returns of 8.98 per cent, while the five driest years returned 25.7 per cent on average.
Brokerages expect the company to continue outperforming in the auto segment, driven by launches and the strong trajectory of healthy bookings.
From Rs 73k to over Rs 1.2L between January-December 2025 -- is buying gold in 2026 still sensible?
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.
Billionbrains Garage Ventures, the parent company of stock broking firm Groww, on Thursday fixed a price band of Rs 95-100 per share for its upcoming Initial Public Offering (IPO), targeting a valuation of over Rs 61,700 crore (about $7 billion). The company's Rs 6,632 crore IPO would open for public subscription on November 4 and conclude on November 7, according to a public announcement.
Automotive (auto) stocks have been among the best performers in the BSE 200 index in recent months. More than half of the top 15 gainers over the past one, two, and three months have come from the sector.
Shares of Billionbrains Garage Ventures, the parent of online broking platform Groww, soared nearly 30 per cent on their market debut on Wednesday, defying the recent trend of muted listings. The stock opened at Rs 112 and hit a high of Rs 134.4 before settling at Rs 128.85 on the NSE - a gain of 28.85 per cent over its issue price of Rs 100.
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.
As the quick commerce (qcom) race hots up, a new model - vertical qcom - is gaining investor attention. Unlike horizontal players such as Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart, which stock everything from groceries to gifts and gadgets, vertical platforms focus on depth over breadth.
Shares of Oil marketing companies (OMCs) extended their gains for the fourth consecutive session on Thursday after crude oil prices plunged to six-month lows in the international markets, which boosted investor sentiments. Traders said the OMC stocks gained with crude oil prices hovering below $70 per barrel after OPEC-plus decision to increase output from April, a move which is expected to favour Indian refiners with added marketing margins on retail fuel.
More than a third of 83 mainboard IPOs this year ended their debut sessions in the red, with losses of up to 35 per cent.
From the Sensex pack, UltraTech Cement, Infosys, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech and Tata Consultancy Services were the biggest gainers. Zomato tanked nearly 6 per cent followed by IndusInd Bank which declined about 5 per cent. Adani Ports, Mahindra & Mahindra, Reliance Industries and Sun Pharma were also among the laggards.
Among Sensex firms, Tata Steel, HCL Tech, UltraTech Cement, Bharat Electronics, Sun Pharma and Tata Consultancy Services were the major gainers. However, Axis Bank, Titan, Maruti and Tata Motors were among the laggards.
Among Sensex firms, Mahindra & Mahindra climbed 2.34 per cent, followed by Maruti which climbed 1.70 per cent. Power Grid, Reliance Industries, Bharti Airtel and Eternal also were also among the gainers. However, ITC, HCL Tech, Tata Consultancy Services, Tech Mahindra and Infosys were among the laggards.
Among Sensex firms, Tata Motors rose the most by 3.97 per cent. Mahindra & Mahindra jumped by 3.96 per cent. Maruti, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finance and UltraTech Cement were also among the gainers. However, Trent declined 3.81 per cent. Asian Paints, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, L&T, TCS, Power Grid and Sun Pharma were also among the laggards.
Stock markets snapped the four-day falling streak on Tuesday with the benchmark Sensex rebounding by 317 points on buying in auto and pharma shares amid a decline in retail inflation to a more than six-year low, nearing the RBI's comfort zone. The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 317.45 points or 0.39 per cent to settle at 82,570.91. During the day, it jumped 490.16 points or 0.59 per cent to 82,743.62. The 50-share NSE Nifty edged higher by 113.50 points or 0.45 per cent to 25,195.80.
Asian Paints reported a good performance for the second quarter (July-September) of 2025-26 (Q2FY26), with some help from base effects, despite strong competition and extended monsoon. Volume grew in low double digits in the key domestic decorative paints, and value in that segment grew by 6 per cent. Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) grew 21 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), and PAT (profit after tax) grew 14 per cent. Asian Paints also defended market share better after several quarters where it had lost ground to Birla Opus.
'Defence, capital goods, engineering, capital market-related stocks, autos, and cement sectors are my bullish bets for Samvat 2082.'
Fourteen stocks have appreciated by more than 1000 per cent this Samvat, with Walchand and MMTC being the only better known stocks.
'Earnings growth will be the main driver of India's market in 2026, with profits expected to rise 9% to 10% in H2 FY26 and accelerate to 12% to 15% in FY27.'
Ask rediffGURU and tax expert Mihir Tanna your income tax-related questions.
Among Sensex firms, ITC, Bharti Airtel, Trent, Bajaj Finserv, Titan and Reliance Industries were the major laggards. However, UltraTech Cement, Adani Ports, Tata Motors, Bharat Electronics, Bajaj Finance and Hindustan Unilever were among the major gainers.
Sun Pharma, NTPC, Maruti, Bharti Airtel, Trent and Axis Bank were also among the gainers. However, Tata Motors, Power Grid, Eternal, Bajaj Finserv and Hindustan Unilever were among the laggards.
Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (TMPV) on Friday reported a 13 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) decline in consolidated revenue from operations for the second quarter of 2025-26 (Q2FY26), largely due to the cyberattack on its subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) in late August that forced a shutdown of its manufacturing operations for over five weeks.
'Right now, silver -- and especially platinum -- are very cheap compared to gold. If I were buying today, I would choose platinum.'
Insurance stocks gain after parliament passes bill to hike FII limit.
Among Sensex firms, Tata Motors, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, Power Grid, Bharat Electronics, ITC, UltraTech Cement and Tata Consultancy Services were the major laggards. However, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv and Axis Bank were among the gainers.
From the 30-share Sensex firms, Tata Motors, Bajaj Finance, Eternal, Adani Ports, Tata Steel, Titan, Mahindra & Mahindra and Power Grid were among the gainers. Asian Paints, Sun Pharma, ITC, Nestle, Reliance Industries and HCL Tech were among the laggards.
Amid the political push and pull, the Centre's decision to allow sugar exports and remove the 50 per cent duty on molasses exports has rekindled hope in the industry that more relief may follow.
Digital payments provider PhonePe has filed draft papers with markets regulator Sebi for its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) using the confidential pre-filing route. On Wednesday, the company's spokesperson said, "PhonePe Ltd has filed the Pre-filed Draft Red Herring Prospectus with Sebi and the stock exchanges, under...the Sebi ICDR Regulations in relation to the proposed initial public offering of its equity shares on the main board of the stock exchanges".
From the Sensex firms, Adani Ports, Eternal, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Reliance Industries, Power Grid and NTPC were the major gainers. Sun Pharma, however, tanked over 5 per cent.
Larsen & Toubro's (L&T) Q1FY26 revenue and net profit came in slightly ahead of estimates. There was strong core engineering and construction (E&C) order inflows at Rs 76,600 crore, with order wins in energy and infrastructure in domestic and international markets.
Among these, Hindalco and Vedanta from the metal pack have become multi-baggers, gaining 100 per cent in 2016
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