Nifty Logs Worst Weekly Losing Streak in Nearly 2 Years; Pharma Cracks, FMCG Outperforms

On the first trading session of August, Indian benchmark indices opened on a soft note and continued to slide as the day progressed, with the sell-off intensifying in the latter half of the session. The Nifty 50 ended the day down by 203 points, or 0.82 per cent, closing at 24,565.35, while the Sensex slipped by 585.67 points, or 0.72 per cent, to settle at 80,599.91.

This marked the Nifty’s fifth consecutive week of losses, its worst weekly slump in nearly two years, with a weekly decline of 1.09 per cent and a close below the 24,600 mark—it’s lowest in a month. The last instance of five straight weeks of losses was recorded back in 2023.

Market breadth remained negative for the Nifty 50, with 38 stocks ending in the red and only 12 advancing. Sectorally, almost all key indices closed lower, except for Nifty FMCG, which stood out as the sole gainer. The broader markets were also under pressure, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Smallcap 100 indices declining by 1.33 per cent and 1.66 per cent, respectively.

In stock-specific developments, UPL share price fell over 5 per cent following a wider loss in Q1FY26. Godrej Properties share price dropped 2.5 per cent as operating losses increased, while ITC bucked the trend, rising over 1 per cent ahead of its Q1FY26 earnings announcement. Within the sectoral performance, the Nifty FMCG index gained 0.69 per cent, led by Radico and Emami, whereas the Nifty Pharma index was the worst performer, declining over 3 per cent.

Among the top contributors to the Nifty 50's upward movement were ITC, adding 11.04 points; Hindustan Unilever, contributing 8.14 points; and Kotak Bank, with 5.68 points. Conversely, the biggest drags on the index were Infosys, which shaved off 40.44 points; Sun Pharma, down by 23.31 points; and Bharti Airtel, which fell by 20.26 points.

Disclaimer: The article is for informational purposes only and not investment advice.