logo
Nifty below 25,450; media shares decline

Nifty below 25,450; media shares decline

The key equity benchmarks traded with minor cuts in the morning trade. The Nifty traded below the 25,450 mark. Media shares declined after advancing in the previous two trading sessions.
At 10:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 74.17 points or 0.09% to 83,358.72. The Nifty 50 index lost 22.45 points or 0.09% to 25,438.55.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.01% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.14%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,803 shares rose and 1,816 shares fell. A total of 225 shares were unchanged.
Indias foreign exchange reserves rose by $4.84 billion to $702.78 billion in the week ended June 27, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Friday, July 4.
Foreign currency assets surged by $5.75 billion to $594.82 billion. Gold reserves fell by $1.23 billion to $84.5 billion during the reported week, while special drawing rights (SDRs) rose by $158 million to $18.83 billion.
Indias reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also increased by $176 million to $4.62 billion, central bank data showed.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Media index fell 1.23% to 1,740.05. The index rose 0.83% in the past two trading sessions.
Nazara Technologies (down 2.51%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (down 1.84%), PVR Inox (down 1.39%), Sun TV Network (down 1.27%) and Saregama India (down 0.83%), D B Corp (down 0.34%) declined.
On the other hand, Dish TV India (up 4.31%), Tips Music (up 0.56%) and Hathway Cable & Datacom (up 0.19%) edged higher.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Power and Instrumentation (Gujarat) added 2.14% after the firm said that it has received a work order from Nyati Engineering & Construction valued at Rs 2.59 crore.
Puravankara rallied 3.39% after the company has selected as the preferred developer for the redevelopment of eight residential societies in Chembur, Mumbai.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Send two officers to take stock of Ratna Bhandar: Odisha government to RBI
Send two officers to take stock of Ratna Bhandar: Odisha government to RBI

New Indian Express

time21 minutes ago

  • New Indian Express

Send two officers to take stock of Ratna Bhandar: Odisha government to RBI

BHUBANESWAR: The state government on Thursday wrote to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for assigning two senior and experienced officers for taking stock of the inventory of the Ratna Bhandar of the Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri. Addressing mediapersons, Law and Excise minister Prithviraj Harichandan said a letter has been written to the RBI Governor to send two of its officers who have experience in making inventories of treasures of popular temples in the country. He added that the process of shifting the jewellery and precious stones of the Trinity from the temporary strong rooms to the Ratna Bhandar will begin soon. 'Counting of the ornaments and other valuables will begin as soon as RBI sends its officers. The entire process will be done in their presence,' he said. Notably, the Archaeological Survey of India had completed the repair and renovation of the Ratna Bhandar last week.

Battle-hardened Wall Street bulls are proving very hard to scare
Battle-hardened Wall Street bulls are proving very hard to scare

Economic Times

time39 minutes ago

  • Economic Times

Battle-hardened Wall Street bulls are proving very hard to scare

Wall Street's tolerance for shock is becoming heroic. ADVERTISEMENT First came the inflation angst, then the tariff crash, then the war in the Middle East. At this point, it's hard to imagine what could still rattle the investor class. Speculative spirits were on display again this week, even as President Donald Trump escalated threats against major trading partners, including a 35% tariff on Canadian goods and a 50% levy on copper. Bitcoin surged past $118,000, bond volatility fizzled, stocks held near records and retail traders unleashed risky wagers anew. It's a form of investor resilience, built by facing down threats and emerging stronger — where even the prospect of a renewed US-led trade conflict gets brushed aside, in favor of bullish bets across the board. JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon has a different word for it: complacency. But for traders sitting on fattening profits in crypto, tech, leveraged ETFs, commodities and beyond, it's feeling like vindication. 'We absolutely believe the recent bullish price action in risk assets makes sense,' said Max Kettner, chief multi-asset strategist at HSBC. 'Bear in mind this is no longer just equities but spreading across virtually all risk assets. So if anything, we'd argue investors are once again under-exposed and continue to fight the rally.' ADVERTISEMENT Traders are getting harder to frighten even as measures that presaged past market stress climb. A global trade policy uncertainty index tracked by Bloomberg is rising, just as it did in the months before April's global market meltdown. The S&P 500 closed Friday marginally below its record. Risk premiums tracking US corporate bonds hovered around their lowest level of the year. Bitcoin exchange-traded funds continued to see inflows. Volatility receded, with a gauge of US Treasury swings hitting its lowest level in nearly 3 1/2 years as measures of stocks. Oil and gold turbulence remained subdued. ADVERTISEMENT And yet, Trump warned this week that new and higher rates will kick in Aug. 1, unless countries negotiate better terms. The announcement of a 35% tariff on some Canadian goods came the same day the S&P 500 hit its all-time high.'The market has consistently shrugged off any issues, including tariffs, and even the brief conflict between Israel and Iran,' said Josh Kutin, head of multi-asset solutions, North America at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. 'If the market is not overall responding negatively to any of those issues, I have a hard time seeing how that happens in the near-term.' ADVERTISEMENT Kutin says the administration's habit of backing off when markets react badly to trade policies keeps him calm — and on the lookout for tactical opportunities to add equity exposure. Indicators across several portfolios continue to flash bullish signals, he says, driven by strong momentum and relatively low volatility. And while acknowledging the current state can feel 'toppy,' he believes the rally has room to run. The view reflects an increasingly common bet across Wall Street, known as the 'TACO' trade, for Trump Always Chickens Out. The wager is that either the administration will walk back its tariff threats, or the upshot of the offensive simply won't be enough to derail the expanding US economy. Whatever the reasoning, bullishness is prevailing. ADVERTISEMENT Trump took to social media this week to celebrate record highs in tech and industrial stocks, as well as an unstoppable crypto runup that sent Bitcoin soaring to $118,000. That market confidence — forged in an environment that has repeatedly punished skeptics — has made some investment pros queasy.'People are getting a little bit too comfortable with this idea that Trump's always going to back down,' said David Lebovitz, the global strategist of multi-asset solutions at JPMorgan Asset Management. 'We've gone from a world where nobody knew anything to everybody knows something. It's almost like the market's going to go through this stress test where they see how far they can push it until they begin to see those cracks.'Complacency was also invoked by his boss, JPMorgan's Dimon, as stocks hit record highs amid the deluge of tariff news this week. He said a trade framework with Europe still 'needs to get done,' and that the Federal Reserve is far more likely to raise interest rates than is generally believed in markets.'The rally has gone way too far,' said Kristina Hooper, chief market strategist at Man Group. 'The tariff situation is far from resolved. It's absolutely difficult for investors to model this out, so it's easier to ignore it than think about the consequences.'Hooper advises reallocating to equity markets that offer better diversification and more attractive valuations — including Europe, the UK and even China.'I'm a sober realist,' Hooper said. 'We have valuations that are at historically high levels. And so when stocks are priced at a near perfection, it's a lot easier for disappointment to occur.'Despite concerns over potentially stretched valuations and mixed economic signals, bulls say it's a mistake to get in the way of markets rolling with this much momentum. Kettner, for his part, believes the US exceptionalism will continue as he ratchets up HSBC's overweight, particularly to US equities. This week's erratic tariff announcements may end up being a bullish catalyst if walked back, he says. With a weaker dollar and lowered earnings expectations, the upcoming reporting season could provide further support for equities. 'We also strongly disagree with the idea of complacency,' he said. 'Equities and risk assets are well positioned to climb the wall of worries further in the coming weeks.'

Passive Funds Become New Favourite For Indian Investors; ETFs, Index Funds Hit 17% AUM
Passive Funds Become New Favourite For Indian Investors; ETFs, Index Funds Hit 17% AUM

News18

timean hour ago

  • News18

Passive Funds Become New Favourite For Indian Investors; ETFs, Index Funds Hit 17% AUM

AMFI data shows that the AUM of passive funds has reached Rs. 12.11 lakh crore in May 2025. This is an increase of 25% from AUM of Rs. 9.70 lakh crore in May 2024. Also, passive funds make up 16.78% of the total MF AUM of Rs. 72.18 lakh crore. Total AUM in Nifty 50 ETFs has increased from Rs 2.78 lakh crore as of March 2024 to Rs 3.67 lakh crore as of June 2025, representing a robust growth of 32%. Hemen Bhatia, Executive Director & CEO at Angel One Asset Management, attributes this shift to a combination of better awareness and market evolution. 'There is a definite shift happening as investors understand the benefit of passive investing. The diminishing alpha of actively managed large-cap funds has only accelerated this transition," he added. He further explained that while the active large-cap AUM grew by 3.4x from March 2020 to May 2025, passive large-cap schemes benchmarked to indices like Nifty 50 and Sensex witnessed a 6.4x growth during the same period. 'Investors are realising that individual alpha is inconsistent. Hence, many prefer to settle for market returns via Nifty 50 ETFs and index funds," he added. Satish Dondapati, VP & Fund Manager at Kotak Mutual Fund, also reiterated, 'The demand for passive funds is increasing due to their low expense ratios, broad diversification, and more consistent long-term returns. These funds are simple, transparent, and easier for investors to understand." Retail Participation Growing With Digital Push Fintech platforms and greater financial literacy are fuelling retail participation in passive instruments. Bhatia noted that as of March 2025, retail investors contributed Rs 18,000 crore to Nifty 50 index funds under Direct Plans, and Rs 5,000 crore under Regular Plans. Additionally, retail investments in Nifty 50 ETFs stood at Rs 4,000 crore. 'Many first-time investors are turning to Nifty 50 index funds and ETFs as they offer exposure to India's top companies with lower risks," he said, adding that fintech apps have made data and tools more accessible to the average investor. Varun Gupta, CEO of Groww Mutual Fund, highlighted the twin forces at work. 'We have seen rising awareness among retail investors, but advisors too are actively recommending passive products now as they align well with investor needs," he said. Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities, pointed to global parallels: 'In the first half of 2025, retail investors poured a record $155 billion into U.S. stocks and ETFs. India is following a similar path." Rising Concerns Over Index Concentration While passive funds are gaining traction, experts caution against the risks of over-concentration in the top-weighted stocks of the Nifty 50. Vakil noted, 'A market-cap-weighted index like the Nifty 50 can lead to skewed allocations towards a few heavyweight stocks. This may increase volatility, especially during sector-specific downturns." Bhatia, however, downplayed concerns, saying the risk is partly offset by the liquidity of large-cap stocks. 'Larger companies are more liquid, which makes it easier for ETFs or index funds to replicate the index without significant disruption," he stated. advetisement Still, Vakil warned that rising passive inflows could reduce the tradable supply of large-cap stocks and increase market distortions around rebalancing dates. The Road Ahead For Passive Investing In India The consistent growth in passive fund flows indicates a maturing investor base that is more informed and focused on long-term wealth creation. With fintech platforms making investing more accessible and regulatory reforms enforcing greater transparency in fund performance measurement, passive investing is fast becoming a preferred choice for both seasoned and first-time investors. As Mr. Bhatia aptly summed up, 'The success of an active fund often sows the seeds of its own underperformance. Passive funds, on the other hand, offer consistency and clarity—traits that are increasingly valued by investors today." Disclaimer: The views and investment tips by experts in this report are their own and not those of the website or its management. Users are advised to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store