The frontline indices traded with modest gains in the afternoon trade, supported by positive global cues. Investors will closely monitor IPO activity, the India-US trade deal, and developments on the tariff front. The Nifty traded above the 25,150 mark.
Auto, private bank and pharma shares advanced, while realty, media and FMCG shares declined.
At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, advanced 368.89 points or 0.45% to 82,555.70. The Nifty 50 index added 115.25 points or 0.46% to 25,174.90.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 0.17% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.12%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,735 shares rose and 2,140 shares fell. A total of 188 shares were unchanged.
Gainers & Losers:
Tata Motors (up 1.96%), Bharti Airtel (up 1.27%), Maruti Suzuki India (up 1.26%), Shriram Finance (up 1.12%) and Bajaj Auto (up 1.15%) were the major Nifty50 gainers.
Tata Consumer Products (down 2.61%), Bharat Electronics (down 1.28%), Hindustan Unilever (down 1.11%), Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (down 0.66%) and UltraTech Cement (down 0.56%) were the major Nifty50 Losers.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Welspun Specialty Solutions (WSSL) declined 3.32% after the company reported a net loss of Rs 0.75 crore in Q1 FY26, compared to a net profit of Rs 1.95 crore posted in Q1 FY25. However, revenue from operations jumped 24.19% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 201.32 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) rallied 2.91% after the company’s net profit rose by 10.70% to Rs 1,745.69 crore in Q1 FY26 as against Rs 1,576.83 crore posted in Q1 FY25. Total revenue from operations increased by 2.21% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 6,915.38 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
Dixon Technologies (India) rose 2.81% after the company reported a 100.44% surge in consolidated net profit to Rs 280.02 crore in Q1 FY26 from Rs 139.70 crore posted in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations zoomed 95.08% year on year (YoY) to Rs 12,835.66 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
United Breweries shed 0.88%. The company’s consolidated net profit jumped 5.95% to Rs 183.87 crore in Q1 FY26, compared to Rs 173.55 crore posted in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) rose 15.72% YoY to Rs 2,864.32 crore in the June 2025 quarter.
Global Markets:
European shares opened higher on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump revived hopes for a trade deal with the EU following an agreement with Japan.
Asian markets traded in the green, with Nikkei leading the gains, after President Donald Trump announced the signing of a "massive” trade deal with Japan.
The deal includes reciprocal tariffs of 15% on the country’s exports to the U.S., with auto duties reportedly being lowered to that level as well.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reportedly said that he needed to examine the deal before commenting.
Additionally, the news that Washington had reportedly achieved agreements with the Philippines and Indonesia encouraged investors, giving them hope that other nations may also reach arrangements to avoid the worst of the US president's levies.
The announcements boosted hopes that other deals could be in the pipeline, though talks with the European Union and South Korea reportedly remain elusive for now.
Equity markets have been rising in recent weeks on hope that countries will eventually sign trade deals with the US. This is despite the fact that there haven't been many agreements reached with Trump, despite the deadline of 01 August 2025.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and other indexes eased off the day's highs, while the S&P 500 set another new high in the final minutes of trading Tuesday, as investors grinded through countless quarterly financial results.
According to media reports, the S&P 500 companies are expected to report a 7% increase in earnings on average for the second quarter, with technology heavyweights driving much of that gain.
Meanwhile, U.S. trade policy remains a major point of uncertainty for investors and companies as Trump's self-imposed 01 August deadline for many countries to reach agreements with the White House approaches.
On Tuesday, GM tumbled after the automaker reported a $1 billion hit from tariffs to its quarterly results, adding more fuel to investor concerns about U.S. President Donald Trump's global trade policy.
The recent rally in Wall Street’s most valuable companies has been fueled by the optimism about heavy spending on artificial intelligence.
Following the mixed economic data released last week, reports suggest that the market has trimmed its expectations about interest-rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve at next week's policy meeting. The market now expects about a 60% chance of a reduction in rates at the September meeting.