Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets remained under pressure on Tuesday, with the Sensex extending its losing streak to third session and the Nifty declining for the sixth consecutive session, amid persistent geopolitical uncertainty and elevated crude oil prices after the US-Iran ceasefire expired without a new agreement. Sentiments remained downbeat as Ind-Ra projected India's GDP growth to slow down to 6.8 per cent in the FY27, as against 7.6 per cent in the previous year.

Both the Sensex and Nifty closed near the day’s lows, each falling over half a percent, amid continued selling in IT stocks and FIIs outflows. Further, investors also remained cautious ahead of the weekly expiry of Nifty F&O contracts.

Some of the important factors in trade:

India's GDP growth at a four-quarter low of 7% in the April-June quarter: Some cautiousness also came as rating agency ICRA estimated India's GDP growth at a four-quarter low of 7% in the April-June quarter of the current fiscal, sliding from 7.8% in the March quarter of FY26, on a slower pace of expansion in the services sector.

FIIs selling keeps markets under pressure: Sentiment remained subdued as Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned net sellers, offloading equities worth Rs 2,535.10 crore on August 17, 2026.

India’s unemployment rate falls to 5.1% in July 2026: Traders overlooked Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO) report showed overall unemployment rate among persons aged 15 years and above declined to 5.1 per cent in July 2026 from 5.5 per cent in the previous month. 

On the global front: European markets were trading in red, while Asian markets ended mostly lower amid escalating U.S.-Iran tensions. Sentiments weakened after U.S. President Donald Trump ruled out extending the temporary ceasefire agreement with Iran.

The BSE Sensex ended at 77235.46, down by 492.70 points or 0.63% after trading in a range of 77234.36 and 77575.21. There were 11 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Healthcare up by 0.25%, Auto up by 0.15%, Industrials up by 0.08% and Energy up by 0.03%, while IT down by 1.66%, TECK down by 1.60%, Realty down by 1.28%, Consumer Durables down by 0.81%, and FMCG down by 0.67% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Axis Bank up by 1.22%, Power Grid Corporation up by 0.66%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.59%, Reliance Industries up by 0.30% and Trent up by 0.24%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 2.60%, HCL Technologies down by 2.31%, Infosys down by 2.13%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.47% and Interglobe Aviation down by 1.47% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, citing risks from fuel and food inflation stemming from West Asia conflict's uncertainty, weak currency, and the likely impact of El Nino on agriculture, India Ratings & Research (Ind-Ra) has projected India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth to slow down to 6.8 per cent in the current fiscal year (FY27), as against 7.6 per cent in the previous year. Though, the growth projection is tad higher than the 6.7 per cent growth Ind-Ra had projected in May. The agency has forecast quarterly GDP growth at 6.9 per cent, 6.6 per cent, 6.7 per cent, and 6.9 per cent for April-June (Q1), July-September (Q2), October-December (Q3), and January-March (Q4), respectively.

The domestic rating agency said it now estimates average crude oil price at $85/bbl in FY27 compared to $95/bbl in May 2026. It expects rupee-dollar exchange rate to average Rs 93.98 in FY27 (May 2026: Rs 94.28), a depreciation of 6.4 per cent YoY. It estimates capital flows of $70 billion under foreign currency non-resident (bank) (FCNR B) and external commercial borrowings (ECBs). Ind-Ra said crude oil price of the Indian basket averaged $101.31/bbl in the June quarter of FY27 and $96.49/bbl for April-July 2026. It noted that lower oil prices positively impact the Indian economy by reducing the trade/current account deficit (CAD). However, higher inflation due to El Nino may limit growth upside from lower oil prices.

The agency estimates retail inflation to average 4.9 per cent in FY27, compared to 2 per cent in FY26. Current account deficit is estimated to rise to 1.5 per cent of GDP, from 0.6 per cent in FY26. The FY27 deficit target of 4.3 per cent remains challenging due to subsidies on liquefied petroleum gas and fertilisers. While direct tax collection and non-tax revenue may support achieving the fiscal deficit target, indirect tax collection may pose challenging.     

The CNX Nifty ended at 24154.90, down by 132.75 points or 0.55% after trading in a range of 24154.90 and 24269.65. There were 10 stocks advancing against 40 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Axis Bank up by 1.28%, Max Healthcare Institute up by 1.07%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.92%, Grasim Industries up by 0.87% and Power Grid Corporation up by 0.70%. On the flip side, Tata Motors Passenger down by 2.24%, Asian Paints down by 2.20%, Infosys down by 2.18%, Wipro down by 2.11% and HCL Technologies down by 2.04% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading lower; France’s CAC fell 36.9 points or 0.43% to 8,542.70, Germany’s DAX lost 71.31 points or 0.27% to 26,267.30 and UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 3.98 points or 0.04% to 10,716.32.

Asian markets ended mixed on Tuesday as Brent crude climbed above $91 a barrel after US President Donald Trump said that he was not interested in extending the interim peace deal with Iran, while rising US Treasury yields also kept traders cautious. Japanese shares dropped as Japan’s 10-year government bond yield climbed to a three-decade high as a stalemate in the Middle East conflict stoked inflation worries and reinforced speculation about ‌a near-term Bank of Japan interest-rate increase. South Korea’s Kospi fell due to profit-taking after a sharp semiconductor rally, while ongoing US-Korea trade negotiations over the planned $200 billion investment commitment created uncertainty for Korean exporters. Meanwhile, Chinese shares gained as investors remained optimistic that a string of weaker-than-expected economic data would force Beijing to roll out aggressive new monetary and fiscal stimulus measures.