Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets ended marginally lower on Tuesday, ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy decision. After a cautious start, soon markets slipped into the red and remained subdued for the rest of the session, weighed down by escalating geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan, along with persistent concerns over US - China trade negotiations. Meanwhile, traders overlooked the report that India’s Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for April 2025, compiled by S&P Global, rose to 58.7, an increase from 58.5 recorded in March.  

Some of the important factors in trade:

Moody's ratings cut India's GDP growth projections: Sentiments were downbeat as Moody's Ratings cut India's GDP growth projections for 2025 to 6.3 per cent, from 6.5 per cent, saying economies globally will see a slowdown on account of heightened US policy uncertainty and trade restrictions. 

RBI may cut rates by up to 125 bps in FY26: The SBI Research report said that the Reserve Bank of India may look at cutting policy rates by up to 125 basis points in current fiscal (FY26) amid consumer price index (CPI) inflation falling to a multi-year low of 3.34 per cent and expectation of benign inflation going forward.

Continued FIIs inflow: Traders overlooked the Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 497.79 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.

Global front: European markets were trading in red, as investors are focusing on corporate earnings updates, and looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement due on Wednesday. Asian markets ended mostly in green, as investors watched the latest developments in trade negotiations and awaited further policy action from Beijing to boost consumption.

The BSE Sensex ended at 80641.07, down by 155.77 points or 0.19% after trading in a range of 80481.03 and 80981.58. There were 10 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in red; the BSE Mid cap index down by 2.16%, while Small cap index was down by 2.33%. (Provisional)

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were TECK up by 0.11% and Auto up by 0.07%, while Realty down by 3.49%, PSU down by 2.77%, Power down by 2.64%, Utilities down by 2.36% and Oil & Gas down by 2.09% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 1.66%, Tata Steel up by 1.34%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.28%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.12% and Nestle up by 1.02%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 3.15%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone down by 2.29%, SBI down by 2.24%, Tata Motors down by 2.03% and NTPC down by 1.94% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, after experiencing a slowdown in March, India’s services sector regained momentum in the month of April, driven by a quicker increase in new order inflows, which also underpinned a faster expansion in employment. According to the survey report, the seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index jumped to 58.7 in April from 58.5 in March. Further, the HSBC India Composite PMI Output Index -- which measures both manufacturing and services -- also surged to 59.7 in April as against 59.5 in March.

The report further noted that Indian companies continued to benefit from improved international demand for their services, with Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the US particularly cited as sources of strength. Overall, new export orders expanded at the fastest pace since July 2024. Indian services companies increased their workforce numbers for the thirty-fifth consecutive month in April. Moreover, the pace of job creation was marked and quicker than in March.

On the inflation front, input prices rose moderately and at the slowest pace for six months at the start of the 2025/26 fiscal year. Indian services firms increased their average selling prices during April, as they sought to transfer higher cost burdens to clients. The rate of charge inflation was solid, faster than in March and above its long-run average. Cost pressures were highest among Consumer Services companies, despite a slowdown since March, but it was in the Finance & Insurance segment that the fastest rate of charge inflation was registered.

The CNX Nifty ended at 24379.60, down by 81.55 points or 0.33% after trading in a range of 24331.80 and 24509.65. There were 19 stocks advancing against 31 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Hero MotoCorp up by 2.79%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.88%, Tata Steel up by 1.66%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.55% and Hindustan Unilever up by 1.41%. On the flip side, Adani Enterprises down by 4.13%, JIO Financial Services down by 3.61%, Eternal down by 3.03%, Trent down by 2.73% and SBI Life Insurance Company down by 2.48% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading lower; Germany’s DAX lost 300.82 points or 1.29% to 23,043.72, France’s CAC fell 58.61 points or 0.76% to 7,669.32 and UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 18.8 points or 0.22% to 8,577.55.

Asian markets ended mostly higher in thin trade on Tuesday as investors watched the latest developments in trade negotiations. Besides, Malaysia said that Washington had agreed for further talks and there could be a cut in tariffs. Chinese stocks resumed trading after the Labor Day holidays amid signs of Washington and Beijing taking a more conciliatory approach to resolving trade disputes after resorting to tit-for-tat tariffs. A private survey showed China's services activity deteriorated more than expected in April to hit a 7-month low, raising concerns about the state of the economy but fueling speculation over new stimulus measures. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped with tech stocks such as Alibaba and Baidu leading the surge on optimism over Sino-U.S. talks. Stock markets in Japanese and South Korean were closed for public holidays.