Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets faced selling pressure on Monday, with Nifty 50 settling below 22,600 mark, amid weak global cues and US tariff uncertainty weighed heavily on sentiments. Indices made a gap down opening as some concern came with Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) data showing that bank credit as well as deposits witnessed deceleration during the October-December quarter (Q3FY25) sequentially. In afternoon session, indices deepened their losses to trade near day’s low point and remained lower till end of the day.

Some of the important factors in today’s trade:

Ongoing selling pressure by FIIs: Investors took cautious approach with exchange data showing that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,449.15 crore on a net basis on Friday.

India's Forex Reserves see $2.54 billion dip: Sentiments were downbeat as RBI said snapping the three-week rising streak, India’s forex reserves dropped by $2.54 billion to $635.721 billion in the week ended February 14.

Trump to impose tariffs on India, China: Traders were cautious with US President Donald Trump’s statement that his administration will soon impose reciprocal tariffs on countries such as India and China, reiterating what he had said during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to the US capital.

Global front: Most of the European markets were trading in green as market participants digesting the results of the nation's general election, which saw the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) emerging victorious. Asian markets ended in red as weak U.S. economic data rekindled growth worries and also weighing on markets, researchers in China said they discovered a new coronavirus in bats that enters cells using the same gateway as the virus that causes Covid-19.

The BSE Sensex ended at 74454.41, down by 856.65 points or 1.14% after trading in a range of 74387.44 and 74907.04. There were 7 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.78%, while Small cap index was down by 1.31%. (Provisional)

The only gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 0.22% and FMCG up by 0.16%, while IT down by 2.60%, TECK down by 2.56%, Telecom down by 2.26%, Metal down by 2.16% and Basic Materials down by 1.53% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.58%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.41%, Nestle up by 0.40%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.25% and ITC up by 0.21%. On the flip side, HCL Technologies down by 3.36%, Zomato down by 3.28%, TCS down by 3.03%, Infosys down by 2.83% and Tech Mahindra down by 2.42% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, with an aim to meet the durable liquidity needs of the system, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is all set to inject Rupee liquidity for longer duration through long-term USD/INR Buy/Sell swap. Accordingly, the RBI will be conducting a USD/INR Buy/Sell swap auction of $10 billion for a tenor of 3 years.

The three-year swap auction will be held on February 28, 2025. The market participants would be required to place their bids in terms of the premium that they are willing to pay to the Reserve Bank for the tenor of the swap, expressed in paisa terms up to two decimal places. The auction cut-off would be based on the premium. The auction would be a multiple-price based auction, i.e., successful bids will get accepted at their respective quoted premium.

The swap entails the central bank purchasing dollars from banks against the rupee while contracting to sell the greenback at a future date. When the central bank buys dollars, it injects an equivalent quantum of rupee liquidity. This is the second such swap in recent weeks as the monetary authority tries to curb a liquidity deficit in the banking system. Late last month, it injected $5 billion via a six-month foreign-exchange swap.

The CNX Nifty ended at 22553.35, down by 242.55 points or 1.06% after trading in a range of 22518.80 and 22668.05. There were 12 stocks advancing against 38 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.49%, Dr Reddy's Laboratories up by 1.11%, Eicher Motors up by 0.97%, Hero MotoCorp up by 0.84% and Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.67%. On the flip side, Wipro down by 3.69%, HCL Technologies down by 3.33%, TCS down by 2.92%, Infosys down by 2.80% and Bharti Airtel down by 2.32% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading mostly in green; Germany’s DAX gained 195.55 points or 0.87% to 22,483.11 and UK’s FTSE 100 increased 26.92 points or 0.31% to 8,686.29, while France’s CAC fell 12.22 points or 0.15% to 8,142.29.

Asian markets settled down on Monday, tracking Wall Streets’ fall last Friday after US President Donald Trump reiterated that his administration would impose reciprocal tariffs soon on countries like India and China, while weak economic data rekindled growth worries in the world’s largest economy. Chinese shares declined as US President Donald Trump ordered new restrictions on Chinese investments across critical American industries. Also, media reports suggested that the Trump administration has asked Mexico to levy their own duties on Chinese imports as part of their efforts to avoid possible US tariffs. Japanese markets were closed in observance of the emperor's birthday.