Benchmarks end lower amid global jitters, Nifty closes below 25,120

Equity benchmarks ended slightly lower on Thursday as investors navigated mixed global cues and a choppy trading session marked by the weekly F&O expiry. After opening flat, the Nifty gradually lost ground, and a mid-session recovery attempt fizzled out, eventually closing below the 25,120 mark.

The broader sectoral picture was mixed. Realty, metal, and consumer durables stocks saw buying interest, while IT and banking shares dragged the indices down.

Investor mood remained cautious, clouded by global uncertainty, a sluggish start to the earnings season, and lack of clarity on the India-US tariff resolution, which continues to hang in the balance.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 375.24 points or 0.45% to 82,259.24. The Nifty 50 index fell 100.60 points or 0.40% to 25,111.45.

Infosys (down 1.61%), Reliance Industries (down 0.58%) and HDFC Bank (down 0.48%) were major drags.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.07% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.30%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 2,007 shares rose and 2,040 shares fell. A total of 152 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 0.02% to 11.24.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.16% to 6.303 from the previous close of 6.313.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 86.0750 compared with its close of 85.9250 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 August 2025 settlement shed 0.52% to Rs 97,275.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.48% to 98.75.

The United States 10-year bond yield shed 0.38% to 4.471.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for September 2025 settlement shed 13 cents or 0.19% to $68.65 a barrel.

Global Markets:

European indices edged higher on Thursday even as the Eurozone's consumer price index (CPI) rose to 2% in June, up from 1.9% in May, signaling a slight uptick in inflation. Meanwhile, the UK unemployment rate climbed to 4.7% in May, compared to 4.6% in the previous month, pointing to some softness in the labor market.

Most Asian indices ended higher as investors digested Japan's second straight monthly drop in exports and conflicting signals from U.S. President Donald Trump on monetary policy and trade.

Japan's exports slipped 0.5% year-on-year in June, following a 1.7% fall in May, signaling continued weakness in external demand. Meanwhile, Trump denied plans to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, just hours after reportedly telling Republican lawmakers otherwise. The president added fuel to the trade uncertainty by reiterating a potential 25% tariff on Japanese imports, casting doubt on a comprehensive trade deal with Japan.

On the flip side, Singapore delivered a surprise. Its non-oil domestic exports surged 13% in June versus a year ago, sharply rebounding from a 3.9% drop in May. This marked the fastest growth since July 2024.

U.S. markets shrugged off the Powell drama. The Dow Jones rose 0.53%, the S&P 500 gained 0.32%, and the Nasdaq advanced 0.26% as Trump told reporters he was 'not planning anything' regarding Powell's removal, despite continuing to criticize the Fed chief for high interest rates and a pricey renovation of the Fed building.

Economic data brought a mixed bag. Producer prices in the U.S. remained flat in June on a monthly basis, with annual growth slowing to 2.3% from May's 2.7%. However, consumer prices showed signs of heating up, rising 2.7% year-on-year in June compared to 2.4% in May. On a monthly basis, inflation stood at 0.3%, matching expectations.

On Wall Street, Tesla shares climbed 3% after the EV giant announced plans to launch a six-seater Model Y this fall. Meanwhile, Global Payments surged 5% following reports that activist investor Elliott Management had taken a stake in the company.

New Listing:

Shares of Smartworks Coworking Spaces ended at Rs 445.10 on the BSE, a premium of 9.36% compared with the issue price of Rs 407.

The scrip was listed at Rs 436.10, a premium of 7.15% to the issue price. The stock has hit a high of Rs 469 and a low of Rs 436. On the BSE, 16.77 lakh shares of the company were traded in the counter.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Wipro fell 0.93%. The IT major's net income for the Q1 quarter was at Rs 3330 crore, decrease of 6.7% QoQ and increase of 10.9% YoY. Gross revenue at Rs 22130 crore, decrease of 1.6% QoQ and increase of 0.8% YoY. Total bookings was at $4,971 million, up by 24.1% QoQ and 50.7% YoY in constant currency. The company expects revenue from its IT Services business segment to be in the range of $2,560 million to $2,612 million. This translates to sequential guidance of (-)1.0% to 1.0% in constant currency terms.

Axis Bank fell 0.68%. The bank's net profit de-grew 4% YoY to Rs 5,806 crore in Q1FY26. The bank's Net Interest Income (NII) was up 1% YoY to Rs 13,560 crore. Net Interest Margin (NIM) for Q1FY26 stood at 3.80% as against 3.97% in Q4FY25 and 4.05% in Q1FY25.

Tech Mahindra declined 2.76% after the company reported a 2.24% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,140.6 crore on a 0.25% fall in revenue from operations to Rs 13,351.2 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

L&T Technology Services (LTTS) advanced 1.72% after the company's consolidated net profit increased 1.48% to Rs 315.70 crore despite a 3.9% decline in net sales to Rs 2,866 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

Mahindra Logistics jumped 6.66% to Rs 415.40 after the company's board approved the detailed terms of its planned rights issue. The board, in its meeting held on July 17, approved the issuance of 2.70 crore fully paid-up equity shares at a price of Rs 277 per share, aiming to raise up to Rs 749.26 crore. Eligible shareholders will receive 3 rights shares for every 8 held as of the record date, which has been set for July 23. The entire issue price will be payable at the time of application. The issue will close on August 14, unless extended. If fully subscribed, the company's outstanding equity base will expand from 7.21 crore shares to 9.91 crore shares.

Le Travenues Technology (Ixigo) surged 19.74% after the company reported a 28.48% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 19.08 crore on 72.89% increase in net sales to Rs 314.47 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.

Maruti Suzuki India shed 0.70%. The company has announced a price hike for Baleno and Ertiga models after adding six airbags as standard safety feature.

State Bank of India shed 0.35%. The bank informed that its board has approved the opening of the issue of qualified institutional placement (QIP) of equity shares with the floor price of Rs 811.05 per equity share. The floor price of Rs 811.05 is at a discount of 2.47% to the scrip's previous closing price of Rs 831.55 on the BSE.

HDFC Asset Management Company added 2.86% after the company's standalone net profit rose 23.83% to Rs 747.92 crore on 26.58% surge in total income to Rs 1,200.44 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.

Angel One rose 0.61%. The company consolidated net profit declined 60.89% crore on a 18.85% fall in total revenue from operations to Rs 1,140.5 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.

Navkar Corporation surged 11.73% after the company reported a standalone net profit of Rs 2.45 crore in Q1 FY26 as against a net loss of Rs 13.07 crore posted in Q1 FY25.However, revenue from operations advanced 17.44% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 138.14 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.

Newgen Software Technologies tumbled 6.14% after the company reported 54.1% fall in consolidated net profit to Rs 49.72 crore on a 25.4% decline in revenue from operations to Rs 320.65 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

Lotus Chocolate Company hit a lower circuit of 5% after the company's standalone net profit tumbled 56.49% to Rs 2.98 crore in Q1 FY26 as against Rs 6.85 crore posted in Q1 FY25. However, revenue from operations rose 12.31% to Rs 158.70 crore in the first quarter of FY26 from Rs 141.30 crore recorded in Q1 FY25.

Godawari Power & Ispat surged 2.79% after the company received a crucial environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).

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