India’s key benchmark indices, the Sensex 30 and Nifty 50, displayed a cautious and fluctuating performance, slipping into the red on Wednesday. The markets faced mixed trading in European stocks, coupled with apprehensions ahead of crucial events such as the US Federal Reserve’s Minutes, Nvidia’s earnings report, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) policy meetings.
As of the latest update, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty 50 declined by 0.17% to 22,158.35, while the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex 30 registered a 0.18% drop, hovering just below the 73,000 mark.
Key highlights from the stock market include:
India’s benchmark indices interrupted a six-day winning streak in Wednesday’s trading session.
Notable gainers on the Nifty included Tata Steel, JSW Steel, SBI Bank, Adani Enterprises, and Eicher Motors. Conversely, Powergrid, NTPC, Infosys, Coal India, and BPCL emerged as leading laggards.
Zee Entertainment faced a significant setback, with its shares plummeting over 10% following a Bloomberg report exposing an accounting issue of over INR20 billion ($241.36 million) in the company’s accounts.
Maruti Suzuki India came under scrutiny as the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence initiated an inquiry.
Paytm shares continued to experience an upper circuit after reaching record lows.
The World Bank and other entities issued offshore India rupee bonds due to soaring demand.
While the US stock markets settled lower on Tuesday after the Presidents’ Day holiday, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) made a historic 25 bps cut in the five-year Loan Prime Rate (LPR), which failed to excite traders.
India’s trade data for January revealed a shrinking trade deficit of $17.49 billion, while in the US, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) data came in higher than expected.
Investor focus now turns towards the release of the Minutes of the Fed‘s January meeting and Nvidia’s earnings report, with the Indian economic calendar remaining relatively quiet until Thursday’s RBI Minutes. The market continues to navigate uncertainties both globally and domestically.
