The headline equity indices traded with major losses in the afternoon trade as investor sentiment turned risk-averse following US President Donald Trump’s decision to double tariffs on Indian goods to 50%.
The Nifty tanked below the 24,400 level. All sectoral indices on the NSE traded in the red, with metal, oil & gas, and realty shares experiencing the steepest declines.
At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex dropped 671.06 points or 0.84% to 79,867.40. The Nifty 50 index declined 208.75 points or 0.85% to 24,362.40.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.21% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 1.43%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,212 shares rose and 2,677 shares fell. A total of 150 shares were unchanged.
Gainers & Losers:
Hero Motocorp (up 3.04%), JSW Steel (up 0.58%), ITC (up 0.29%), HDFC Bank (up 0.23%) and Asian Paints (up 0.15%) were the major Nifty50 gainers.
Adani Enterprises (down 3.79%), Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (down 3.58%), Jio Financial Services (down 2.35%), Tata Motors (down 2.17%) and Reliance Industries (down 1.55%) were the major Nifty50 losers.
Hero Motocorp advanced 3.04% after the company’s standalone net profit rose 0.3% to Rs 1,125.70 crore despite of 5.6% decline in revenue from operations to Rs 9,578.86 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Trump's Tariff:
United States President Donald Trump announced an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods on August 6. This effectively doubles the total import duties to 50%. The decision responds to India’s ongoing purchase of Russian oil, which the U.S. believes undermines its sanctions. The new tariffs will come into effect on August 27.
The move is expected to severely impact key Indian export sectors, including leather, chemicals, footwear, gems and jewellery, textiles, and shrimp.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Trent shed 0.97%. The company reported a 9.45% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 429.69 crore in Q1 FY26 as against Rs 392.57 crore posted in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations jumped 18.98% YoY to Rs 4,883.48 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
Jindal Stainless declined 3.47%. The company has reported 11% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 715 crore on a 8% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 10,207 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) tanked 6.82% after the company’s consolidated net loss widened to Rs 445.50 crore in Q1 FY26 compared with net loss of Rs 211.40 crore in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations saw a marginal year-on-year (YoY) increase of 0.03%, reaching Rs 5,486.91 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
IRCON International declined 4.01% after the company’s consolidated net profit dropped 26.75% to Rs 164.10 crore in Q1 FY26, compared to Rs 224.03 crore in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations declined 21.89% to Rs 1,786.28 crore during the quarter, compared to Rs 2,287.13 crore in the same quarter last year.
VIP Industries rose 1.21%. The firm reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 13.10 crore in Q1 FY26 compared with a net profit of Rs 4.04 crore in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations declined 12.12% year on year (YoY) to Rs 561.43 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
Global Markets:
Most European markets opened higher on Thursday, buoyed by a strong wave of corporate earnings. At the same time, new U.S. tariff rates on numerous trading partners came into effect, adding to the market’s focus ahead of the Bank of England’s monetary policy meeting.
Asian shares advanced as U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to impose a 100% tariff on imports of semiconductors and chips.
However, the companies that are “building in the United States” would be exempted from the said tariff.
Meanwhile, South Korea posted a record-high current account surplus in June on strong demand for technology exports, central bank data showed on Thursday.
The country's current account stood at a surplus of $14.27 billion, up from $10.14 billion in May. It was reportedly the biggest monthly surplus in the data series dating back to January 1980.
South Korea's trade deal with the U.S. will take a huge burden off monetary policymakers at their upcoming meeting later this month, the country's central bank governor reportedly said on Thursday at his first meeting with the newly appointed finance minister.
The Bank of Korea kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.50% last month, but a majority of board members signaled another rate cut in the next three months and warned of "significant" economic uncertainty from the U.S. tariffs. The central bank next meets on August 28.
All three major equity averages on Wall Street finished with gains on Wednesday.
The S&P 500 advanced 0.73% to finish at 6,345.06, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.21%, closing at 21,169.42. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 81.38 points, or 0.18%, to end the day at 44,193.12.