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The key equity benchmarks closed deep in the red on Tuesday, breaking a three-day winning streak as investors locked in profits at stretched valuations. The rally, fuelled by optimism around the India-US trade deal, ran into selling as caution crept in ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision due on Friday. Weakness was not limited to frontline stocks, with the broader market also sliding under pressure. The Nifty 50 slipped below the 25,650 mark, dragged down by sharp losses in metal, consumer durables and auto stocks. The S&P BSE Sensex slumped 503.76 points or 0.60% to 83,313.93. The Nifty 50 index fell 133.20 points or 0.52% to 25,642.80. Over the past three consecutive trading sessions, the Sensex advanced 3.20%, while the Nifty gained 3.29%. Bharti Airtel (down 1.66%), Reliance Industries (down 1.02%) and ICICI Bank (down 0.98%) dragged the Nifty lower. In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index fell 0.43% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index tanked 0.81%. The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,737 shares rose and 2,447 shares fell. A total of 164 shares were unchanged. The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, shed 0.69% to 12.17. Numbers to Track: The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.54% to 6.659 compared with previous session close of 6.695. In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.3375 compared with its close of 90.4700 during the previous trading session. MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement fell 0.68% to Rs 152,000. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.18% to 97.83. The United States 10-year bond yield advanced 0.05% to 4.280. In the commodities market, Brent crude for April 2026 settlement dropped 95 cents or 1.37% to $68.51 a barrel. Global Market: Most European stocks declined on Thursday as traders digested regional earnings and awaited interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, due later in the day. Most Asian indices ended lower as the tech sell-off on Wall Street gained momentum, with cryptocurrencies also falling. Bitcoin declined more than 2%, hovering below the $71,400 level. Wall Street slipped on Wednesday, with the technology rout deepening amid AI disruption worries, while investors digested Alphabet's earnings and fresh labour market signals. The broader S&P 500 index slid 0.51% and closed at 6,882.72, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 260.31 points, or 0.53%, and settled at 49,501.30. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.51% to end at 22,904.58. Meanwhile, ADP on Wednesday released its monthly look at private payroll growth for January, which showed an increase of just 22,000 on the month after a downwardly revised 37,000 increase in December. Alphabet reported earnings after the bell. The Google parent reported solid advertising revenue and reiterated plans for heavy investment in AI infrastructure, but investors remained cautious about the near-term impact on profitability. Qualcomm shares slid nearly 10% in post-market trading after the company forecast second-quarter revenue and profit below market estimates, citing a global memory chip shortage that is expected to dampen mobile phone sales and broader device demand. Stocks in Spotlight: PB Fintech spurted 7.80% after the company cancelled its board meeting scheduled for 5 February 2026, to consider a Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP). Earlier, PB Fintech had informed exchanges that the board would meet to evaluate a potential fund raise to support inorganic growth through investments, acquisitions or partnerships in India and overseas. The cancellation signalled that the proposed capital raise will not be pursued for now, easing near-term dilution concerns and lifting investor sentiment. Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) added 1.74% after the company's standalone net profit surged 321.98% to Rs 12,125.86 crore in Q3 FY26 compared with Rs 2,873.53 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) rose 5.43% YoY to Rs 2,04,424.39 crore in Q3 FY26 as against Rs 1,93,899.5 crore reported in Q3 FY25. Metropolis Healthcare rose 4% after its consolidated profit after tax rose 33.7% YoY to Rs 42 crore in Q3FY26, compared with Rs 31 crore in Q3FY25. Revenue from operations increased 25.8% YoY to Rs 406 crore in Q3FY26, compared with Rs 323 crore in Q3FY25. Trent added 2.95% after the company reported a 36.3% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 639.71 crore on 15.98% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 5259.46 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25. Hexaware Technologies slumped 7.25% after the company reported weaker profitability for the quarter, impacted by labour code-related costs. On a consolidated basis, reported profit declined 9.1% YoY to Rs 291.6 crore in Q4CY25, compared with Rs 320.7 crore in Q4CY24. On a sequential basis, reported profit fell 21.2% QoQ from Rs 369.9 crore in Q3CY25. The quarter was impacted by an expense of Rs 111.1 crore related to the implementation of new labour codes, which weighed on reported profitability. Revenue in rupee terms rose 10.3% YoY to Rs 3,478.2 crore in Q4CY25, compared with Rs 3,154.4 crore in Q4CY24. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, revenue was marginally lower by 0.2% from Rs 3,483.6 crore in Q3CY25. JSW Cement added 6.37% after it has reported consolidated net profit of Rs 149.02 crore in Q3 FY26 compared with net loss of Rs 68.79 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations jumped 13.16% YoY to Rs 1621.22 crore in Q3 FY26. Keystone Realtors declined 4.32% after the company's consolidated net profit fell 77.57% to Rs 3.38 crore on a 42.64% fall in revenue from operations to Rs 266.17 crore in Q3 December 2025 over Q3 December 2024. Timken India fell 1.87% after the company reported a 30.2% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 54.56 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 78.21 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations rose 14.1% to Rs 779.67 crore in Q3 FY26 as against Rs 683.35 crore in Q3 FY25. Tata Power Company declined 1.89% after the company's consolidated net profit fell 25.1% to Rs 771.98 crore on 9.37% fall in revenue from operations to Rs 13,948.41 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25. Lloyds Engineering Works jumped 3.30% after the company's consolidated net profit jumped 70.86% to Rs 61.03 crore on 2.34% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 272.45 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25. Parag Milk Foods slumped 8% after the company reported an 18% drop in consolidated profit to Rs 30 crore despite a 14% rise in revenue to Rs 1,013 crore in Q3 FY26 as compared with Q3 FY25. Automotive Axles fell 7.17% after the company's standalone net profit declined 1.94% to Rs 38.81 crore on a 5.94% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 562.29 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Q3 FY25. Uno Minda added 2.16% after the company reported an 18.13% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 300.48 crore on a 19.93% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 5,018.06 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25. Suzlon Energy declined 3.86% after the company's consolidated net profit dropped 65.2% to Rs 445.28 crore despite a 9.38% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 4,228.18 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25. Quality Power Electrical Equipments rallied 6.35% after its consolidated net profit zoomed 220.69% to Rs 62.76 crore in Q3 FY26 as against Rs 19.57 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations jumped 291.27% to Rs 283.99 crore in Q3 FY26 as against Rs 72.58 crore in Q3 FY25. Powered by Capital Market - Live News
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