The key equity indices traded with significant losses in early trade. The Nifty dropped below the 24,750 mark. Market sentiment remained cautious amid weak global cues, including concerns that the U.S. budget bill could significantly increase the national debt, potentially threatening the country's status as a global safe haven.
Barring media index all the sectoral indices on the NSE were traded in red with IT, FMCG and auto shares leading the fall.
At 09:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 730.25 points or 0.87% to 80,888.61. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 208.85 points or 0.84% to 24,604.70.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 0.55% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.03%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,240 shares rose and 1,399 shares fell. A total of 160 shares were unchanged.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth 2,201.79 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 683.77 crore in the Indian equity market on 21 May 2025, provisional data showed.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) shed 0.44%. The company’s standalone net profit declined 34.7% to Rs 6448.28 crore despite a 1% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 34,982.23 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q4 FY24.
VRL Logistics soared 11.31% after the company’s standalone net profit surged 244.7% to Rs 74.25 crore on 5.3% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 809.03 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q4 FY24.
Interglobe Aviation (Indigo) declined 1.25%. The company reported a 61.9% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 3067.50 crore on 24.3% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 22,151.90 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q4 FY24.
Numbers to Track:
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee was flat at 85.5900.
MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2025 settlement added 0.60% to Rs 95,053.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.12% to 99.49.
The United States 10-year bond yield declined 0.15% to 4.590.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for July 2025 settlement fell 9 cent or 0.14% to $64.82 a barrel.
Global Markets:
Most Asian markets declined on Thursday, mirroring overnight losses on Wall Street. Investor sentiment was impacted by concerns that a proposed U.S. budget bill could significantly increase the national debt.
In Japan, the manufacturing sector contracted for the eleventh consecutive month in May, according to preliminary data from the au Jibun Bank flash manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). The index registered at 49.0 for the first three weeks of May, slightly improving from 48.7 in April but remaining below the 50-mark that separates growth from contraction.
In the United States, all three major stock indices closed lower on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.91%, the S&P 500 dropped 1.61%, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.41%. The market selloff was attributed to a sharp rise in Treasury yields amid concerns that the proposed budget bill could increase fiscal pressure.
The proposed legislation, which includes tax cuts and spending measures, is reportedly facing resistance from within the Republican party. Analysts estimate the bill could add between $3 trillion and $5 trillion to the current U.S. debt, which stands at $36.2 trillion. The development follows a recent credit rating downgrade by Moody’s, citing concerns over the rising national debt.
In corporate news, Alphabet Inc. shares rose more than 2% following the company's announcement of new AI-related products and initiatives aimed at maintaining its competitive edge in the sector.
Microsoft Corporation traded slightly lower after disclosing that approximately 394,000 Windows devices worldwide had been infected by the Lumma malware.