Weak trade persists over Dalal Street

A weak trade persisted over the Dalal Street in early afternoon deals, as global concerns weighed on investor sentiment. Apart from geopolitical tensions and higher crude prices, a weaker rupee, elevated US bond yields and continued foreign portfolio outflows were adding to market pressure. The street took a note of Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) which has showed that India's unemployment rate (UR) for persons aged 15 years and above fell to a four-month low of 5.1 per cent in July 2026, from 5.5 per cent in June 2026.

During early noon deals, the Sensex witnessed a sharper decline than the Nifty, reflecting broad-based selling pressure. IT stocks remained among the key drags, while some energy and auto stocks showed relative resilience. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as investors closely monitored developments in West Asia and global interest-rate expectations.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 77383.64, down by 344.52 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 77275.96 and 77575.21. There were 10 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining, while 1 stock remained unchanged on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Energy up by 0.38%, Auto up by 0.26%, Utilities up by 0.22%, Healthcare up by 0.18% and Oil & Gas up by 0.16%, while IT down by 1.53%, TECK down by 1.39%, Consumer Durables down by 0.68%, FMCG down by 0.45% and Bankex down by 0.43% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.89%, Bajaj Finance up by 0.89%, Axis Bank up by 0.78%, Trent up by 0.61% and Reliance Industries up by 0.51%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 2.95%, HCL Technologies down by 2.14%, Infosys down by 2.11%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.43% and Tech Mahindra down by 1.41% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, India has further strengthened its defence indigenisation drive with the notification of the sixth Positive Indigenisation List (PIL), comprising 405 strategically important items and offering an estimated business opportunity of Rs 3,070 crore. The list covers a wide range of defence requirements, including Line Replaceable Units, sub-systems, sub-assemblies, spares, components and raw materials. These include 16 items of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and 389 items of Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs).

This sixth PIL, notified by the Department of Defence Production (DDP), Ministry of Defence, marks another step in the Government’s efforts to promote self-reliance in defence manufacturing under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative. It is expected to further expand opportunities for the Indian industry, strengthen the domestic defence manufacturing ecosystem, promote investment & innovation, and contribute to reducing dependence on imports.

Each item has an indicative timeline for indigenisation. Upon successful indigenous development, these items will be procured from the Indian industry. The DPSUs and ICG will undertake indigenisation through various routes, including their ‘Make’ procedure and in-house development, with participation from the industry, particularly MSMEs.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24208.25, down by 79.40 points or 0.33% after trading in a range of 24174.45 and 24269.65. There were 16 stocks advancing against 33 stocks declining, while 1 stock remained unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.14%, Grasim Industries up by 1.01%, Trent up by 0.99%, Bajaj Finance up by 0.88% and Axis Bank up by 0.85%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 2.16%, Infosys down by 2.11%, HCL Technologies down by 2.11%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.71% and Tata Motors Passenger down by 1.65% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; KOSPI dropped 108.11 points or 1.57% to 6,869.83, Taiwan Weighted lost 548.59 points or 1.21% to 45,308.68, Nikkei 225 slipped 1715.25 points or 2.54% to 67,505.00 and Straits Times fell 73.86 points or 1.28% to 5,694.60, while Hang Seng advanced 23.77 points or 0.09% to 25,477.00, Shanghai Composite strengthened 7.65 points or 0.19% to 3,990.30 and Jakarta Composite gained 70.95 points or 1.11% to 6,472.84.