The key equity indices witnessed major cuts in afternoon trade as global sentiment remained subdued. Investors continue to process the limited clarity stemming from the partial U.S.-China trade deal, an agreement that offers potential for renewed tariff tensions. The Nifty traded above the 25,100 level. The market was volatile due to the weekly expiry of the Nifty F&O series today.
Metal shares extended losses for the second consecutive session.
At 14:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 780.56 points or 0.95% to 81,734.58. The Nifty 50 index slipped 244.35 points or 0.97% to 24,897.05.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.35% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 1.38%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,217 shares rose and 2,736 shares fell. A total of 154 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 3.09% to 14.09.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Metal index fell 1.52% to 9,351.15. The index declined 2.06% in the two consecutive trading sessions.
Welspun Corp (down 2.85%), Tata Steel (down 2.85%), APL Apollo Tubes (down 2.18%), NMDC (down 2.1%), Lloyds Metals & Energy (down 1.88%), Jindal Steel & Power (down 1.86%), Steel Authority of India (down 1.85%), Vedanta (down 1.82%), Hindustan Copper (down 1.71%) and National Aluminium Company (down 1.58%) fell.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.25% to 6.278 from the previous close of 6.294.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 85.6300 compared with its close of 85.5350 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 5 August 2025 settlement rose 1.05% to Rs 97,751.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.45% to 98.20.
The United States 10-year bond yield fell 0.16% to 4.404.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for August 2025 settlement shed 78 cents or 1.12% to $68.99 a barrel.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Canara Bank fell 1.02%. The bank announced a 50 basis points (bps) reduction in its Repo Linked Lending Rate (RLLR), bringing it down from 8.75% to 8.25%, in line with the Reserve Bank of India’s latest repo rate cut.
Aegis Logistics shed 0.32%. The company has announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Sea Lord Containers (SCL), has commissioned a cryogenic Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) terminal at Mangalore.