Key gauges continue to trade lower in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade lower in morning deals weighed down by ‌heavyweight financial stocks. Also, rising crude oil prices on fresh concerns over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz kept markets under pressure. However, losses remain capped as some support came with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s statement that the government's sustained capital expenditure push over the years has encouraged private sector investment, with companies now taking on greater risks to capitalise on India's growth momentum. Sector-wise, auto stocks remained in watch as the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) has said that India’s total automobile retail sales surged 25.89 per cent year-on-year to 25,91,138 units in July 2026 as compared with 20,58,325 units in the corresponding month last year. 

The BSE Sensex was trading around half percent down. Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv emerged as the top laggards, with both stocks declining more than 3%. 

The Nifty 50 was trading marginally lower as continued FII selling weighed on sentiment, with NSE data showing net equity outflows of Rs 17.86 crore on August 6, 2026. However, the downside was limited as buying in index heavyweights, particularly IT stocks, helped cushion the losses.  

On the global front, Asian markets are trading mixed following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, amid uncertainty over a deal on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz after reports emerged that Iran may bar U.S., Israeli and other hostile vessels from transiting the Strait, raising fresh concerns over global oil supplies and rekindling inflationary concerns.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 78567.94, down by 386.82 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 78451.99 and 78757.40. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 1.05%, Auto up by 0.75%, FMCG up by 0.51%, TECK up by 0.47% and Capital Goods up by 0.30%, while Telecom down by 0.58%, Bankex down by 0.50%, Metal down by 0.34%, Basic Materials down by 0.30% and Oil & Gas down by 0.20% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS up by 2.68%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.48%, HCL Technologies up by 0.98%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.75% and Infosys up by 0.71%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 4.69%, Bajaj Finserv down by 3.55%, Trent down by 2.42%, ICICI Bank down by 1.66% and Eternal down by 0.99% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to attract more investments, NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri has said that India needs to ease the process of land acquisition for setting up industries. He stated significant progress has been made in improving the ease of doing business in the country, but much more remains to be done, especially at the grassroots level.

He said ‘The factors holding up investment in India are mostly structural. Factor market imperfection, especially in land and capital, is a major impediment. Land acquisition for not only industrial projects but even government-sponsored infrastructure projects suffer several impediments, including legal challenges.’

Further, he said while foreign savings have helped India, the magnitude has been limited compared to what flowed into China and Singapore. Moreover, he noted that investment in a country is primarily funded by domestic savings.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24574.60, down by 61.40 points or 0.25% after trading in a range of 24529.20 and 24630.40. There were 19 stocks advancing against 31 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were TCS up by 2.26%, ONGC up by 1.46%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.46%, HCL Technologies up by 1.27% and Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.17%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 4.19%, Bajaj Finserv down by 3.66%, Trent down by 2.40%, Shriram Finance down by 1.49% and Maruti Suzuki India down by 0.87% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mixed; Hang Seng advanced 60.72 points or 0.24% to 25,591.00, Straits Times rose 46.74 points or 0.83% to 5,685.73, Jakarta Composite gained 44.77 points or 0.71% to 6,388.48 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 19.16 points or 0.49% to 3,919.51.

On the flip side, Nikkei 225 slipped 394.26 points or 0.6% to 65,289.00, Taiwan Weighted lost 263.55 points or 0.59% to 44,133.15 and KOSPI dropped 70.32 points or 1.12% to 6,226.06.