Markets fall for 4th straight day on foreign fund outflows

Indian equity benchmarks fell for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump accused India and China of being the primary funders of Russia's war in Ukraine through their continued purchase of Russian oil. Besides, foreign fund outflows and concerns over the steep hike in US H-1B visa fees continued to dent investor sentiment. 

Some of the important factors in trade:

OECD raises India's GDP growth by 40 bps to 6.7% for FY26: The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has raised India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth by 40 bps to 6.7 per cent for FY26 from its earlier projection of 6.3 per cent in June -- driven by strong domestic demand and robust GST reforms. 

India to enter Global Innovation Index top 10 in next three years: Union Home Minister Amit Shah has expressed confidence that India would secure a position among the top 10 on the Global Innovation Index in next three years. He said that the country’s ranking on the Index has gone up from 91 to 38 in the last decade. 

India to generate 3,343 GW solar power using wasteland: National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) report said that India has potential to have about 3,343 GWp ground-mounted solar PV from 27,571 square km of wasteland across the nation.   

Cement stocks in watch: Ratings agency ICRA has said that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) cut is likely to reduce overall construction expenses in rural housing by 0.8%-1.0%, boosting volumes and supported enhanced capacity addition. 

Global front: European markets were trading lower after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in a speech said that equity prices are fairly highly valued by many measures. Asian markets settled mixed after several Federal Reserve officials, including Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated caution over further policy easing.  

Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 386.47 points or 0.47% to 81,715.63 and the CNX Nifty was down by 112.60 points or 0.45% to 25,056.90.     

The BSE Sensex touched high and low of 82,045.47 and 81,607.84 respectively. There were 9 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.   

The broader indices ended in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.85%, while Small cap index was down by 0.50%.

The lone gaining sectoral index on the BSE was FMCG up by 0.11%, while Realty down by 2.47%, Utilities down by 1.19%, Capital Goods down by 1.09%, Auto down by 1.06% and Power down by 1.06% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid Corporation up by 1.63%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.48%, NTPC up by 1.31%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.88% and HCL Technologies up by 0.88%. On the flip side, Tata Motors down by 2.67%, Bharat Electronics down by 2.24%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.52%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.30% and Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.13% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in its latest 'World Economic Outlook' report has raised India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth by 40 bps to 6.7 per cent for fiscal year 2025-26 (FY26) from its earlier projection of 6.3 per cent in June -- driven by strong domestic demand and robust GST reforms. It also projected the country’s GDP growth at 6.2 per cent for FY27. It mentioned that in India, higher tariff rates will weigh on the export sector, but overall activity is anticipated to be supported by monetary and fiscal policy easing, including the reform to the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

The report noted that the food price inflation has declined sharply in India, helped by strong domestic supply and export restrictions. It further said amongst the G20, China, India and Brazil face the highest increases in bilateral US tariff rates this year. Ongoing legal challenges and negotiations, and the risk of new tariffs on currently-exempt items, add to uncertainty about trade policies.

It also said global growth proved more resilient than expected in the first half of 2025, especially in many emerging markets. The OECD raised its growth forecast for the global economy to 3.2 per cent for this year but kept its 2026 forecast steady at 2.9 per cent, and said it expects global trade uncertainties sparked by U.S. tariffs will likely contract investment and trade in the second half of 2025.

The CNX Nifty touched high and low of 25,149.85 and 25,027.45 respectively. There were 16 stocks advancing against 34 stocks declining on the index.  

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid Corporation up by 1.68%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.36%, NTPC up by 1.31%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.98% and JSW Steel down by 0.93%. On the flip side, Tata Motors down by 2.62%, Bharat Electronics down by 2.16%, Jio Financial Services down by 2.02%, Adani Enterprises down by 1.96% and Wipro down by 1.90% were the top losers.

European markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 7.87 points or 0.09% to 9,215.45, France’s CAC fell 32.02 points or 0.41% to 7,840.00 and Germany’s DAX lost 7.53 points or 0.03% to 23,603.80.

Asian markets settled mixed on Wednesday tracking Wall Streets’ overnight fall after several Federal Reserve officials, including Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated caution over further policy easing. Powell said the Federal Reserve is facing a challenging situation and that there is no risk-free path to achieve the central bank's dual mandate of maintaining full employment and price stability in the US economy. Meanwhile, Japanese shares rose slightly as traders returned to their desks after a public holiday and shrugged off data that showed Japanese manufacturing activity shrank more than expected in September to hit a six-month low. Chinese shares jumped, led by gains in technology shares amid renewed enthusiasm for artificial intelligence and semiconductors.