Indian markets remain sluggish in late trade

The key Indian gauges remained range bound to trade lower in late afternoon trade. The market participants remained cautious amidst uncertainty surrounding US reciprocal tariffs and FII’s fund outflow. The trader also took note of private report forecasting US reciprocal tariff could impact 0.1 to 0.6 percent of India’s GDP. However, losses remained capped as investors opting for fundamentally good midcap and small cap stocks which are beaten down in FII’s selling. The broader the markets were trading in positive with rising expectations of better corporate earnings in ongoing quarter and RBI’s early rate cut. On the global front, Asian markets were trading in red amidst US reciprocal tariffs on pharmaceuticals, automobile and semiconductors, while the European markets were trading in green. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 75709.25, down by 229.93 points or 0.30% after trading in a range of 75463.01 and 75794.15. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index up by 1.14%, while Small cap index was up by 1.31%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 2.46%, Power up by 2.41%, Metal up by 2.02%, PSU up by 1.88% and Oil & Gas up by 1.73%, while Bankex down by 0.48%, TECK down by 0.24%, FMCG down by 0.13% and IT down by 0.12% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 3.59%, Adani Ports up by 3.58%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.71%, Tata Motors up by 1.55% and Tata Steel up by 1.47%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 2.15%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.92%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.51%, HCL Technologies down by 1.46% and ICICI Bank down by 0.99% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its latest monthly bulletin-February 2025 has said that the global economy continues to grow at a steady but moderate pace, with divergent outlook across countries amid rapidly evolving political and technological landscapes. Besides, financial markets remain on edge on the slowing pace of disinflation and the potential impact of tariffs. Emerging market economies (EMEs) are witnessing selling pressures from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and currency depreciation engendered by a strong US dollar. 

The monthly bulletin further noted that in India, high frequency indicators point towards a sequential pick-up in momentum of economic activity during H2:2024-25, which is likely to sustain moving forward. The Union Budget 2025-26 prudently balances fiscal consolidation and growth objectives by continued focus on capex alongside measures to boost household incomes and consumption. It added that retail inflation moderated to a five-month low in January, mainly due to a sharp decline in vegetable prices.

According to one of the articles included in monthly bulletin, the Union Budget 2025-26 reaffirms the Government’s commitment to fiscal discipline while fostering inclusive, long-term economic growth in line with the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’. With a strategic focus on four key growth engines - agriculture, MSMEs, investment, and exports - the budget strikes a balance between immediate consumption support and long-term structural reforms.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22903.65, down by 29.25 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 22812.75 and 22923.00. There were 28 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Shriram Finance up by 3.98%, NTPC up by 3.65%, Adani Ports up by 3.55%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.70% and Bharat Electronics up by 2.43%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 2.16%, Maruti Suzuki down by 2.04%, HCL Technologies down by 1.54%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.54% and Tata Consumer Products down by 1.53% were the top losers.

All Asian markets are trading lower; Hang Seng declined 367.26 points or 1.63% to 22,576.98, Jakarta Composite plunged 17.79 points or 0.26% to 6,777.08, KOSPI dropped 17.46 points or 0.66% to 2,654.06, Nikkei 225 slipped 486.57 points or 1.26% to 38,678.04, Taiwan Weighted lost 116.62 points or 0.5% to 23,487.46, Straits Times fell 5.08 points or 0.13% to 3,928.96 and Shanghai Composite weakened 0.76 points or 0.02% to 3,350.78.

European markets were trading mostly in green; France’s CAC rose 30.08 points or 0.37% to 8,140.62 and Germany’s DAX gained 53.06 points or 0.24% to 22,486.69, while UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 31.97 points or 0.37% to 8,680.56.