Equity markets experienced a volatile trading session on Wednesday, fluctuating between gains and losses before closing in negative territory, with investors remaining cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s monetary policy decision scheduled for Friday.
The BSE Sensex kicked off the day on a positive note at 78,704.60, up from its previous close of 78,583.81, but eventually fell to 78,271.28, a decrease of 312.53 points or 0.40 percent. Similarly, the NSE Nifty50 opened at 23,738.40 compared to its last closing of 23,739.25, but finished lower at 23,696.30, down 42.95 points or 0.18 percent.
Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research at Kotak Securities, noted, “Today, the benchmark indices witnessed narrow range activity. A slight bearish candle formation on the daily charts and lackluster intraday activity suggest the continuation of non-directional momentum in the near future.”
The market witnessed significant volatility throughout the day, with the Nifty reaching an intraday high of 23,807 in early trade before retracing. Ameya Ranadive, Sr Technical Analyst at StoxBox, explained, “The benchmark index began the trading session positively, hitting 23,807 within the first few minutes. However, it failed to sustain this peak and saw some profit-taking.”
Consumer stocks led the decline, with Asian Paints being the worst performer among Nifty constituents, falling by 3.40 percent. Other notable losers included Titan (-2.99 percent), Nestlé India (-2.17 percent), Britannia (-1.96 percent), and Tata Consumer (-1.86 percent). On the other hand, metal and energy stocks showed strength, with Hindalco leading the gainers, up 2.90 percent, followed by ITC Hotels (+2.88 percent), ONGC (+2.74 percent), Apollo Hospitals (+2.44 percent), and BPCL (+2.19 percent).
Despite the weakness in the benchmark indices, the broader market demonstrated resilience. The Nifty Midcap Select index rose by 0.68 percent, while the Nifty Next 50 increased by 0.65 percent. Market breadth remained positive, with 2,548 stocks advancing compared to 1,417 declines on the BSE. Notably, 67 stocks hit 52-week highs, while 59 touched their 52-week lows.
In the currency markets, the Indian rupee weakened to below 87.40, a decrease of 0.35 rupees. Jateen Trivedi of LKP Securities noted, “Despite the dollar index easing below 108$ in recent days, rupee weakness persisted due to trade uncertainty and continued FII outflows.”
Gold markets continued their upward trend, with MCX gold rising by ₹950 to trade above ₹84,750. Trivedi added, “Investors are cautious ahead of Friday’s U.S. unemployment and non-farm payroll data, which will be crucial for market direction.”
Looking ahead, Rupak De of LKP Securities remains optimistic, stating, “The trend continues to favor the bulls as the index remains above the critical moving average. On the higher end, the index may continue to move towards 24,050 in the near term.”
Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities Ltd, highlighted that the markets closed lower amid weak global cues, with selling pressure seen in select banking, auto, realty, and FMCG stocks. However, he noted that the broader markets and other sectoral stocks defied the trend as investors turned to mid and small-cap stocks following a recent sell-off.
Ajit Mishra, SVP Research at Religare Broking, advised investors to focus on stock selection, emphasizing the importance of accumulating fundamentally strong stocks during market dips.
The banking sector experienced moderate weakness, with the Nifty Bank index declining by 0.37 percent to close at 50,343.05, while the Nifty Financial Services index dropped by 0.19 percent to 23,664.40. In a notable development, shares of MTNL surged by the 20 percent upper circuit limit to ₹57.21, driven by optimism surrounding its asset monetization plans for FY26.
