Nifty ends below 24,500 as banking stocks weigh

Business Standard

4 hours ago

Domestic equity benchmarks ended a choppy session in the red on Tuesday, with the Nifty slipping below the 24,500 mark as weakness in banking and financial counters weighed on sentiment. In contrast, pharmaceutical and healthcare shares managed to eke out gains, providing some cushion to the broader market. The subdued close reflected cautious investor mood amid mixed global cues and lingering uncertainty. Traders stayed on edge ahead of the release of Julys domestic inflation data and a crucial US inflation report, both seen as likely drivers of near-term interest rate expectations.
The S&P BSE Sensex dropped 368.49 points or 0.46% to 80,235.59. The Nifty 50 index declined 97.65 points or 0.40% to 24,487.40.
Bajaj Finance (down 2.87%), HDFC Bank (down 1.31%) and ICICI Bank (down 1.02%) dragged the Nifty lower today.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.25% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.04%.
The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2068 stocks rose, 1973 fell, while 163 remained unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 0.12% to 12.23.
Economy:
Indias retail inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), eased to 1.55% in July, down 55 basis points from 2.10% in June, according to data from the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation. This marks the lowest year-on-year inflation rate since June 2017.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper rose 0.65% to 6.470 from the previous close of 6.428.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 87.7125 compared with its close of 87.7500 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 3 October 2025 settlement shed 0.20% to Rs 100,125.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.03% to 98.54.
The United States 10-year bond yield shed 0.07% to 4.282.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for October 2025 settlement added 11 cents or 0.17% to $66.74 a barrel.
Global Market:
Most European indices advanced on Tuesday after U.K. employment grew by a greater-than-expected 238,000 in the three months to June, according to official data. The number of job vacancies declined by 44,000 in the May to July period, marking the 37th consecutive period of quarterly falls.
Shares in Asia mostly advanced after an extension to the U.S.-China trade truce was announced overnight, granting the worlds largest economies more room to negotiate a deal.
President Donald Trump on Monday delayed high U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods from snapping back into place for another 90 days, a White House official has reportedly said.
Those tariffs were set to resume Tuesday. But Trump signed an executive order hours beforehand that extends the deadline until mid-November, according to media reports.
The delay was the expected outcome from the latest round of talks between U.S. trade negotiators and their Chinese counterparts, which took place in Stockholm in late July.
Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry has revised its 2025 growth forecast for the city-state upwards to 1.5%-2.5% from 0%-2%.
On Wall Street, stocks fell across the board to end Mondays session as investors await inflation data this week to assess the outlook for interest rates going forward. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 200.52 points, or 0.45%, and closed at 43,975.09. The S&P 500 slipped 0.25% to end at 6,373.45, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.3% to settle at 21,385.40.
Investors expect the recent shakeup at the U.S. Federal Reserve and signs of labor market weakness could nudge the central bank into adopting a dovish monetary policy stance later this year, fueling much of the optimism.
As per media reports, the semiconductor majors had agreed to give the United States government 15% of revenue from sales of their advanced chips to China.
The report further said that the levy could hit the chipmakers' margins and set a precedent for Washington to tax critical U.S. exports, potentially extending beyond semiconductors.
New Listing:
Shares of Highway Infrastructure ended the day at Rs 122.84 on the BSE, marking a sharp 75.49% premium over its issue price of Rs 70.
The stock made its debut at Rs 117, translating into a 67.14% premium. During the session, it touched a high of Rs 122.84 and a low of Rs 116. Trading was brisk, with over 26.45 lakh shares changing hands on the exchange.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Hindalco Industries shed 0.72%. The company reported a strong performance in Q1 FY26, with revenue from operations rising 13% year-on-year to Rs 64,232 crore. EBITDA grew 9% to Rs 8,673 crore. Net profit surged 30% to Rs 4,004 crore in Q1 FY26.
The company's US-based subsidiary Novelis Inc posted a 13% year-on-year rise in net sales to $4.7 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2026, boosted by higher average aluminium prices and a 1% increase in total rolled product shipments to 963 kilotonnes. Net income attributable to the common shareholder dropped 36% to $96 million, hurt by restructuring charges and lower operating performance, partially cushioned by favourable metal price lag.
Hyundai Motor India rose 2.41% to Rs 2203.90 after a foreign brokerage initiated coverage on the stock with a 'Buy' rating and a target price of Rs 2,600.
Sansera Engineering jumped 1.64% after the company reported a consolidated profit after tax of Rs 63 crore in Q1 FY26, up 26% from Rs 50.1 crore in the same period last year. Revenue from operations increased 3% YoY to Rs 766.3 crore, while EBITDA rose 4% to Rs 132.1 crore, with the EBITDA margin improving to 17.2% from 17.1% in Q1 FY25.
Goldiam International climbed 2.64% to Rs 373.10 after the jewellery manufacturer reported a sharp 53% year-on-year jump in net profit for the June quarter, supported by strong revenue growth and improved operating performance. For Q1 FY26, the company posted a profit after tax of Rs 33.6 crore, up from Rs 22 crore in the same period last year. Total income surged 39% YoY to Rs 235.7 crore in Q1 FY26 on the back of its deeper client penetration; overwhelming customers preference for lab grown diamond jewellery, and strong customers demand despite the headwinds of increased tariffs.
Marksans Pharma tumbled 10.94% after the companys consolidated net profit dropped 34.3% to Rs 58.31 crore despite of 4.97% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 619.98 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Astral slumped 8.14% after the company reported a 32.64% year-on-year drop in consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to Rs 81.10 crore for the quarter ended June 2025, hurt by weaker operating performance across segments. Revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,361.2 crore, down 1.62% as against Rs 1,383.6 crore in the same quarter last year.
Tilaknagar Industries jumped 4.93% after the company reported a 120.8% surge in consolidated net profit to Rs 88.51 crore on a 30.6% increase in revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) to Rs 409.14 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Bata India slipped 4.57% after the company reported a 70.13% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 51.99 crore, while revenue from operations decreased by 0.29% to Rs 941.85 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Praj Industries dropped 7.33% after the companys consolidated net profit declined 93.7% to Rs 5.34 crore on 8.4% fall in net sales to Rs 640.20 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Belrise Industries added 0.75% after the company reported 56.1% increase in net profit to Rs 111.68 crore on a 27% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 2,262.21 crore in Q1 FY26 as compared with Q1 FY25.
Ashoka Buildcon declined 2.31% after the companys standalone net profit declined 25% to Rs 30.62 crore on a 30.2% fall in revenue from operations to Rs 1,310.64 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
IPO Update:
Bluestone Jewellery and Lifestyle's IPO received bids for 88,21,220 shares as against 1,65,14,421 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:30 IST on Tuesday (12 August 2025). The issue was subscribed 0.53 times.
Regaal Resources' IPO received bids for 12,15,53,568 shares as against 2,09,99,664 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:30 IST on Tuesday (12 August 2025). The issue was subscribed 5.79 times.