RIL, financial stocks drag Sensex over 400 pts lower, Nifty below 24,950

Economic Times

3 days ago

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Indian equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty50 opened lower on Friday, dragged by Bajaj twins, Reliance Industries , and Infosys . Meanwhile, investors are expected to track the newly signed trade pact with Britain, which aims to cut tariffs on goods ranging from textiles to whisky and cars.The BSE Sensex was trading 401 points, or 0.49%, lower at 81,782. The Nifty50 was down 135 points, or 0.53%, trading at 24,932 around 9:46 am.Among the Sensex constituents, Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv were the top laggards, falling 5.6% and 4.4%, respectively. M&M, HUL Tata Steel , and Maruti also opened in the red. On the other hand, Eternal ICICI Bank , and HCL Tech opened with gains.Bajaj Finance shares declined sharply after a deterioration in asset quality, with gross non-performing assets (GNPA) rising to 1.03% from 0.86% a year ago, and net NPA increasing to 0.50% from 0.38%.Meanwhile, despite the early market decline, shares of textile, auto, leather, and footwear companies are likely to remain in focus as UK-bound exports become duty-free under the new pact.While the India-UK agreement could improve sentiment, analysts say the market may remain range-bound until there is greater clarity on trade negotiations with the U.S."The India-UK FTA, which is India's first comprehensive trade agreement with a major developed country, has two implications from the market perspective. One, this FTA will significantly boost trade between both countries, which will be seen as a positive by the market. Two, this FTA along with many other FTAs signed by India with other countries, projects India as a nation committed to free trade. The fact that this FTA has come during a time of tariff wars is commendable, and hopefully this will improve India's chances of striking a fair-trade deal with the US," said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit."The near-term market construct has turned weak. Sustained FII selling of Rs 11572 crores in the last four trading days will weigh on the market. The weakness in the broader market, particularly in smallcaps, might continue since valuations had turned excessive and difficult to justify," Vijayakumar added.Hardik Matalia, Derivative Analyst at Choice Broking, said, "Nifty is stuck in a tight range of 24,900–25,300 with no clear direction, facing strong resistance at 25,200–25,300. RSI below 50 signals weak momentum. The 20- and 50-day EMAs at 25,150 and 24,950 mark the consolidation zone. Unless Nifty breaks above 25,300, a cautious approach with a sell-on-rise strategy is ideal."Asian shares eased from highs on Friday, with Japanese markets retreating from a record peak, as investors locked in profits ahead of a crucial week that includes U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff deadline and a host of central bank meetings.The Nikkei slipped 0.5% from Thursday's one-year high. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.5% and mainland Chinese blue chips declined 0.2%. Australia's equity benchmark declined 0.5%.At the same time, U.S. S&P 500 futures added 0.2%, after the cash index edged up slightly to a new record closing high overnight, buoyed by robust earnings from Google parent Alphabet. The tech-heavy Nasdaq also marked a record high.The Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) extended their selling on the fourth day as they sold equities worth Rs 2,133 crore on July 24 . However, Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,617 crore on the same day.Oil prices rose on Friday as trade talk optimism supported the outlook for both the global economy and oil demand, outweighing news of the potential for more oil supply from Venezuela.Brent crude futures touched a one-week high and was up 29 cents, or 0.42%, at $69.47 a barrel as of 0310 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures climbed 29 cents, or 0.44%, to $66.32.The Indian rupee fell 19 paise to 86.59 against the US dollar in early trade. The dollar index, which tracks the movement of the greenback against a basket of six major world currencies, surged 0.16% to 97.53 level.(With inputs from agencies)