Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity benchmarks closed sharply lower on Wednesday, with both the Nifty and Sensex tumbling by over 2%, amid renewed tensions in West Asia after U.S. President Donald Trump declared that the Iran ceasefire is ‘over’. Markets made a negative start and remained under pressure throughout the session, as investors stayed focused on the upcoming earnings season. In the final hours of trade, markets witnessed heavy selling pressure amid broad-based selling across sectors.

Some of the important factors in trade:

Crude oil prices rise sharply: Crude oil prices traded higher with gains of around 6% as escalating tensions in the Middle East heightened concerns over potential supply disruptions after the US President Donald Trump said that the ceasefire is over with Iran.

FDI inflows into India surge by 44% in 2025: Traders overlooked the report released by United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) stating that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows to India increased by 44 per cent in 2025 to $39 billion. 

India, ASEAN assess progress of talks for review of goods FTA: Traders took note of the Commerce Ministry’s statement that India and the 11-nation ASEAN bloc took stock of the progress of talks to review the free trade agreement in goods between the two sides. 

On the global front: European markets were trading in red, as renewed Middle East tensions fueled concerns over inflation and the outlook for central bank policy. Asian markets closed mixed tracking negative cues from Wall Street overnight. 

The BSE Sensex ended at 76503.60, down by 1677.12 points or 2.15% after trading in a range of 76259.03 and 77851.18. All 30 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were FMCG down by 2.54%, Bankex down by 2.46%, Auto down by 2.25%, Oil & Gas down by 1.96%, and Realty down by 1.89% while there were no gaining indices on the BSE. (Provisional)

The top losers on the Sensex were Interglobe Aviation down by 5.08%, Maruti Suzuki India down by 3.83%, Hindustan Unilever down by 3.32%, Bajaj Finance down by 3.08% and Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 2.91%, while there were no gainers on the Sensex. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, with aim of deepening bilateral ties, India and Costa Rica have held their first meeting of the India-Costa Rica Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO). During the meeting, both sides reviewed bilateral trade and investment relations, exchanged views on their respective trade and investment regimes, and noted with satisfaction the steady growth in bilateral merchandise trade to around $391 million in 2025-26. The discussions were also focused on opportunities to further expand trade and investment. 

Further, the two sides exchanged information on their respective standards, accreditation, certification and regulatory frameworks, and explored cooperation in areas such as standards development, conformity assessment, food safety, pharmaceutical regulation and export certification to facilitate trade and reduce technical barriers. Besides, the Indian side highlighted its strengths and identified opportunities for enhanced cooperation in pharmaceuticals, digital technologies, manufacturing and innovation, while the Costa Rican side presented an overview of the Central American trade integration regime and its experience in regional trade negotiations.

Moreover, both sides agreed to strengthen business-to-business engagement, promote institutional cooperation, and encourage regular interactions between the concerned Ministries, regulatory authorities and industry. They reaffirmed their commitment to deepen bilateral economic ties and agreed to utilise the JETCO as a key platform for advancing trade, investment and sectoral cooperation. 

The CNX Nifty ended at 23882.05, down by 516.65 points or 2.12% after trading in a range of 23805.20 and 24300.00. There were 4 stocks advancing against 46 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The few gainers on Nifty were ONGC up by 1.15%, Bajaj Auto up by 0.54%, Hindalco Industries up by 0.22% and Coal India up by 0.02%. On the flip side, JIO Financial Services down by 5.38%, Interglobe Aviation down by 5.02%, Shriram Finance down by 4.91% Maruti Suzuki India down by 4.04% and Hindustan Unilever down by 3.30% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading lower; Germany’s DAX lost 576.35 points or 2.32% to 24,888.90, France’s CAC fell 187.04 points or 2.27% to 8,249.20 and UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 175.37 points or 1.67% to 10,490.51.

Asian markets ended mixed on Wednesday, tracking Wall Street’s overnight decline amid concerns that the AI-fuelled rally in chipmakers may be overstretched, while investors awaited the release of minutes from last month's Federal Reserve meeting. Furthermore, surging crude oil prices and renewed US-Iran tensions added pressure on sentiment following a fresh round of US airstrikes on Iran. The strikes targeted more than 80 locations in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. At the NATO summit in Ankara, US President Trump officially declared an interim peace deal with Iran ‘over’, calling continued talks with Tehran a waste of time. Meanwhile, South Korea's benchmark Kospi Index officially entered a bear market after plunging over 20% from its June record highs.