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The Hindu
17 hours ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Stock indices gain 1.3%, mirroring Asian markets
Benchmark stock indices broke their three-day losing streak and gained 1.3%, buoyed by robust Asian market performance and advancing U.S. futures. Despite opening marginally lower, the indices swiftly moved upwards and sustained momentum throughout the trading session. The S&P BSE Sensex closed at 82,408 points, up 1,046 points, or 1.29%, led by gains in heavy height stocks. Bharti Airtel gained 3.27%, M&M and PowerGrid gained 2.93% and 2.38%, respectively while Reliance and Nestle surged 2.16% and 1.97% respectively. The NSE Nifty-50 index, too, gained 319% or 1.29% to close at 25,112 points. 'Market sentiment experienced a pronounced bullish shift following President Donald Trump's announcement that he would determine within the forthcoming two weeks whether the United States would intervene in the Iran-Israel conflict. This geopolitical development provided the catalyst for renewed investor confidence,' said Devarsh Vakil, head of Prime Research, HDFC Securities. 'The return of optimistic sentiment to Dalal Street manifested in a comprehensive buying surge, as bulls initiated broad-based accumulation across sectors. This renewed appetite for risk assets propelled both flagship equity benchmarks — the Nifty 50 and Sensex — to rally in excess of 1% during Friday's trading session, underscoring the market's renewed vigour and investor conviction,' he added. Nifty Midcap 100 Index gained by 1.46%, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 Index rose over 1%. Market breadth turned positive after seven days, with advancing stocks sharply outpacing declining ones, as indicated by a BSE advance-decline ratio of 1.67, highest since June 9. The buying was broad-based, with all sectoral indices ending in the green. Amongst them, realty, PSU banks, metal, and auto sectors were the major outperformers, leading the charge from the front. All major sectoral indices ended in the green, indicating widespread optimism. Notable gains were seen in metal, PSU bank, realty, power, telecom, and capital goods, with each sectoral index rising between 1% and 2%.
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Business Standard
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Sensex, Nifty trade lower as Israel-Iran tensions keep investors on edge
Indian equity benchmarks were trading lower on Wednesday amid ongoing tensions in West Asia due to the Israel-Iran conflict. Last checked, the benchmark BSE Sensex was trading at 81,552.75, down by 243.4 points or 0.3 per cent, while the Nifty50 was quoting at 24,853.7, down 92.8 points or 0.37 per cent. The majority of the sectors, except Nifty IT, Media and Realty, were trading in red during the afternoon session. The Nifty Pharma and Healthcare indices emerged as top sectoral laggards down by over 1 per cent each. Last checked, the Nifty Pharma index was trading 1.2 per cent lower at 21,773 levels, with the constituents including Aurobindo Pharma, Lupin, Granules, and Sun Pharma down over 2 per cent each. Among others, Natco Pharma, Ajanta Pharmaceuticals, Zydus Lifesciences, Cipla, Divi's Labs, Laurus Labs, and Mankind Pharma fell over 1 per cent each. The Nifty Healthcare index also fell around 1.15 per cent. Among others, Nifty Auto, Bank, Energy, FMCG, Metal, Consumer Durables and Oil & Gas were also trading under pressure falling up to 1 per cent. Catch All Stock Market LIVE Updates However, the broader markets pared early gains to trade lower by the afternoon session. Last checked, the Nifty Midcap 100 index and Nifty Smallcap 100 index were down by 0.14 per cent and 0.22 per cent, respectively. Devarsh Vakil, head of prime research at HDFC Securities, said that the Middle East situation remains fluid, and markets retain the potential for sudden volatility should tensions escalate further. "This uncertainty was reinforced when US stock index futures declined Monday evening after President Donald Trump issued a stern warning against Iran over the ongoing conflict while stating that Tehran should have pursued a nuclear deal with the United States," he added. Looking ahead, investors will closely watch household spending data and Federal Reserve monetary policy decision this week. On the other hand, VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments believes that markets are unlikely to witness a sharp decline less the Israel-Iran situation worsens. "Despite the escalation of the Iran-Israel conflict globally, stock markets are steady and resilient. The decline in the US volatility index CBOE suggests that markets are unlikely to correct sharply unless the conflict takes a dramatic turn for the worse," he said. According to Vijayakumar, the main contributor to the market resilience is the retail investors using every dip in the market as a buying opportunity. Valuations do not appear to deter retail investors. Sustained retail funds flows, mainly through SIPs, are empowering the DIIs to buy consistently. Even while exercising some caution, it makes sense to remain invested in this market and to buy the dips. In the last four trading sessions, after the conflict started FIIs sold stocks for ₹8,080 crore. This FII selling has been completely eclipsed by DII buying of ₹19,800 crore. From a technical perspective, Monday's advance was a follow-through candle to the prior day's bullish belt hold and we also finished above a down-gap level, which is bullish behaviour, said Akshay Chinchalkar, head of research at Axis Securities. "In today's session, resistance can be seen between 25,000 and 25,238 while support lies between 24,750 and 24,800. Global cues are mixed this morning, with Asia up slightly but US index futures in the red," he added.
New Straits Times
13-06-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Energy stocks drag Indian shares down after Israel strikes Iran
MUMBAI: Indian shares declined on Friday, led by oil and gas stocks, as Israel's military strikes on Iran deepened tensions in the oil-rich Middle East and triggered a broad-based selloff across markets. The Nifty 50 fell 1.21 per cent to 24,586.7 and the BSE Sensex slid 1.2 per cent to 80,710.56, as of 9:35 a.m. IST. All 13 sectors logged losses. The broader, more domestically focussed smallcaps and midcaps shed 1.2 per cent each. The MSCI Asia ex-Japan index fell 1 per cent, while safe havens like gold and the Swiss franc gained and oil prices surged 9 per cent amid fears of a supply disruption. Israel said it struck Iranian nuclear targets to block Tehran from developing atomic weapons. The US has ruled out any involvement in the strikes against Iran. The oil and gas index lost 1.5 per cent while the energy index shed 1.3 per cent. Oil marketing companies such as BPCL, HPCL and Indian Oil Corp fell 3.5 per cent each, as surging crude prices raised concerns over a potential squeeze in refining margins. Airline operators Interglobe Aviation and SpiceJet lost about 4 per cent each after an Air India plane crashed in the city of Ahmedabad on Thursday, killing nearly all of the 242 people on board, in the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade. "Heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the Air India plane accident have dampened market sentiment, triggering the sharp fall," said Devarsh Vakil, head of prime research at HDFC Securities.
The Hindu
06-06-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Indices rise 1% as RBI slashes repo rate by 50 basis points
Benchmark indices rose nearly 1% on Friday following the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s repo rate cut of 50 basis points. Markets opened lower and hit an intra-day low within hours of the opening trading session, but shot up immediately after the central bank announced easing of monetary policy. The BSE Sensex rose 0.9% to close at 82,189 points, while Nifty climbed 1% to settle at 25,003 points. Barring Nifty Media, all indices improved, with Nifty realty indices increasing over 4%. The rupee appreciated 11 paise to 85.63 a dollar in response to RBI's dovish moves and changing stance. 'This decisive, growth-driven policy move provided a significant boost to the local currency and fueled optimism among domestic equity investors,' said Dilip Parmar, senior research analyst, HDFC Securities. He, however, cautioned that a 'resurgent Dollar Index and weakening regional currencies' could limit further gains for the rupee. Going by the expectation of experts who had forecast the repo rates to settle down at 5.5% by the end of the year, the central bank front loaded the rate cuts along with cutting cash reserve ratio by 100 basis points. A basis point is 1/100th of a percentage. The RBI also changed stance to neutral from accommodative. 'From a technical perspective, Nifty posted a strong close and is on the verge of breaking above its recent swing high of 25,116. A sustained move above this level could propel the index toward 25,307…On the downside, 24,845 may offer near-term support,' said Devarsh Vakil, head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities.
Mint
06-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
Banking stocks rally as RBI delivers surprise rate and CRR cuts; Nifty Bank jumps 1.6%, Nifty Fin Services surges 2%
Shares of banking and financial services companies soared on Friday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) delivered a larger-than-expected 50 basis point (bps) cut in the benchmark repo rate and a surprise 100 bps reduction in the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR). The Monetary Policy Committee's (MPC) aggressive move, along with a shift in policy stance from 'accommodative' to 'neutral', injected fresh optimism into the markets. The RBI cut the repo rate to 5.50 percent and slashed the CRR by 100 bps in a staggered manner, signaling a clear pivot toward boosting liquidity and credit growth. The CRR, which dictates the portion of deposits that banks must park with the central bank, will now be reduced by 25 bps each over four tranches starting September 6 through November 29, 2025. According to RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra, this move will infuse approximately ₹ 2.5 trillion into the banking system by the end of the year. In tandem, the Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) rate has been adjusted to 5.25 percent and the Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate now stands at 5.75 percent. Reacting to the policy announcement, the Nifty Bank index surged 1.66 percent, Nifty Financial Services gained nearly 2 percent, Nifty Private Bank climbed 2 percent, and the Nifty PSU Bank index advanced 0.6 percent. IDFC First Bank led the gainers, rallying 7 percent, while AU Bank climbed 4 percent. Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, and IndusInd Bank also rose 2–3 percent intraday. Devarsh Vakil of HDFC Securities termed the policy a 'jumbo rate cut' and emphasized that the liquidity injection from the CRR reduction will aid bank margins and bolster private sector investment in the second half of FY26. While global headwinds remain—from US tariffs to geopolitical tensions—the growth-inflation dynamic offered sufficient rationale for monetary easing. Chanchal Agarwal, CIO of Equirus Credence Family Office, highlighted that the RBI's cumulative easing of 100 bps in 2025, coupled with a record ₹ 2.69 trillion dividend and ₹ 9.5 trillion in liquidity infusions since January, marks a strong pro-growth stance. He, however, cautioned that further rate cuts may be limited going forward, especially with the MPC adopting a 'neutral' stance. Sundeep Mohindru of M1xchange noted the policy's positive implications for MSMEs. 'Lower rates and higher liquidity will improve formal credit flow to small businesses through microfinance and TReDS platforms. The CRR cut ensures more active participation by banks,' he said. InCred Equities, in its latest banking sector update, cautioned that the repo rate downcycle could squeeze net interest margins (NIMs), particularly for state-owned enterprises (SOE) banks. Large private banks, they said, are better positioned to weather the margin pressure due to their stronger starting point and more flexible pricing strategies. The brokerage maintained an 'ADD' rating on Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank, and said HDFC Bank may outperform ICICI over the coming years due to stronger deposit growth. Among PSUs, Punjab National Bank and Canara Bank earned 'ADD' ratings for their on-balance sheet liquidity buffers and margin levers. However, State Bank of India and Bank of Baroda received 'HOLD' ratings due to elevated valuations. In conclusion, the RBI's surprise double-barreled action—cutting both the repo rate and CRR—has breathed fresh life into Indian banking stocks, with broader implications for liquidity, credit growth, and private investment. While the front-loaded easing cycle could taper off, analysts believe that the immediate impact will be supportive of economic momentum and market sentiment. As transmission kicks in and liquidity flows rise, sectors such as banking, real estate, and MSMEs are expected to be the key beneficiaries of this bold monetary policy shift. Disclaimer: The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
