Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity benchmarks snapped a three-day winning streak on Friday, weighed down by selling in IT, Banking, and FMCG stocks. Indices made a slightly negative start and extended their losses, as investors booked profits following the recent rally driven by encouraging progress in India-U.S. trade discussions and the U.S. Federal Reserve’s 25 basis point rate cut. However, markets recovered slightly from the day's low points, but ended in negative territory.

Some of the important factors in trade:

Net direct tax collection grows 9.18% till September 17 this fiscal: Traders overlooked the government data which showed that net direct tax collection grew 9.18 per cent so far this fiscal to over Rs 10.82 lakh crore due to higher advance tax mop-up from corporates and slower refunds. 

Solution to tariff issues with US likely to be arrived in next 8-10 weeks: Traders paid no head towards Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran's statement that he expects that a solution to the tariff issues with the US is likely to be arrived in the next eight to ten weeks.

Pharma sector remained in limelight: Traders took note of rating firm Icra has said revenue of leading domestic pharmaceutical companies is set to expand by 7-9 per cent in the current fiscal (FY26) even as global headwinds and regulatory uncertainties cast a shadow over its largest export market, the US.

Global front: European markets were trading mostly in red, as investors overlooked data that showed U.K. retail sales increased for the third straight month in August. Asian markets ended mostly in red ahead of a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping scheduled for later in the day to finalize terms of a deal over TikTok's U.S. operations. 

The BSE Sensex ended at 82626.23, down by 387.73 points or 0.47% after trading in a range of 82485.92 and 82978.63. There were 11 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended mixed; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.09%, while Small cap index up by 0.16%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 1.56%, Power up by 1.30%, Oil & Gas up by 0.67%, PSU up by 0.60% and Realty up by 0.46%, while Consumer Durables down by 0.52%, Bankex down by 0.46%, FMCG down by 0.39%, IT down by 0.30% and Auto down by 0.27% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone up by 1.09%, SBI up by 0.91%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.73%, Asian Paints up by 0.71% and NTPC up by 0.55%. On the flip side, HCL Technologies down by 1.52%, ICICI Bank down by 1.32%, Trent down by 1.26%, Titan Company down by 1.26% and Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.16% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, the Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said India will not encourage or allow rerouting of domestic goods from the UAE to the US. He said that if Indian goods come to the UAE and are sent to other Asian countries or African nations, or other parts of the region, declaring that they are made in India, it will be a very welcome step. He said India will be looking at creating such pathways. 

The remarks are important as the US has imposed a steep 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods entering Washington. It is expected to impact exports of Indian goods from labour-intensive sectors such as shrimp, leather and textiles. Earlier, the commerce ministry had suggested to Indian exporters not to export their goods to the US through countries which are facing lower tariffs than India.

The US accounts for about 18 per cent of India's total goods exports and 6.22 per cent in imports, and 10.73 per cent in bilateral trade. The India-US bilateral trade in goods and services stood at $191 billion. It is planned to double it to $500 billion by 2030. Established in 2013, the task force has served as a vital platform for promoting trade and investment ties, identifying new opportunities and resolving investor issues. The free trade agreement between India and the UAE, which came into force in May 2022, has nearly doubled bilateral merchandise trade from $43.3 billion in 2020-21 to $83.7 billion in 2023-24. The UAE is the seventh largest investor in India. The country has received $24 billion in foreign direct investment from April 2000 to June 2025.

The CNX Nifty ended at 25327.05, down by 96.55 points or 0.38% after trading in a range of 25286.30 and 25428.75. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 5.08%, Indusind Bank up by 1.22%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.10%, SBI Life Insurance up by 1.09% and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone up by 1.06%. On the flip side, HCL Technologies down by 1.77%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.38%, ICICI Bank down by 1.37%, Titan Company down by 1.26% and Trent down by 1.24% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading mostly in red; France’s CAC rose 10.99 points or 0.14% to 7,865.60, while Germany’s DAX lost 58.03 points or 0.25% to 23,616.50 and UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 13.26 points or 0.14% to 9,214.85.

Asian markets settled mostly down on Friday. Seoul shares fell on profit taking in tech shares, even as Wall Street's indexes reached new record highs overnight following the Federal Reserve's first interest-rate cut in nine months and projection of two more rate reductions in 2025. Chinese shares declined ahead of a phone call between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping scheduled for later in the day to finalize terms of a deal over TikTok's US operations. Moreover, Japan’s Nikkei slipped as the Bank of Japan's hawkish tilt lifted the yen. Japan's two-year government bond yield rose to the highest since 2008 after the Bank of Japan held rates as expected but announced it will begin selling its holdings of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and Japanese real-estate investment trusts (J-REITS), amassed over a decade of massive stimulus.