Sensex Down 324 Points, Nifty Loses 109; RIL, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank Weigh

Market Update at 03:45 PM: Indian stock markets ended lower on Monday amid stock-specific pressure, with Reliance Industries (RIL), ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank emerging as the biggest drags after announcing their Q3 results. Investors also remained cautious due to global sentiment, after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose Taxes on several European countries following their opposition to his bid to acquire Greenland.

At the close, the BSE Sensex stood at 83,246.18, down 324.17 points or 0.39 per cent, while the NSE Nifty50 settled at 25,585.5, lower by 108.85 points or 0.42 per cent.

Sectorally, performance remained mixed. The Nifty Realty index slipped 1.99 per cent, Nifty Oil & Gas declined 1.56 per cent, and Nifty Media fell 1.84 per cent. On the positive side, the Nifty FMCG index gained 0.67 per cent, while Nifty Auto inched up 0.13 per cent.

In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 index was down 0.37 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap index dropped 0.99 per cent, reflecting broader selling pressure beyond frontline indices.

Market Update at 12:15 PM: Indian stock markets traded sharply lower on Monday, dragged by selling pressure in Reliance Industries (RIL), ICICI Bank, Wipro, Tata Motors PV, and Cipla shares.

Global market sentiment remained cautious after US President Donald Trump announced plans to levy taxes on European countries opposing his Greenland acquisition plans.

The BSE Sensex traded at 82,986.49, down 583.86 points or 0.70 per cent, while the Nifty50 fell 179 points or 0.70 per cent to 25,515.35 as of 12:09 IST on 19 January 2026.

Among individual stocks, Wipro shares plunged over 9 per cent after the IT company reported a 7 per cent year-on-year decline in Q3 consolidated profit to Rs 3,119 crore. Additionally, Wipro’s Q4 guidance of 0-2 per cent quarter-on-quarter constant currency growth fell short of expectations, indicating ongoing demand softness, fewer working days, and delays in deal ramp-ups.

Other top Nifty losers included M&M, Bharti Airtel, Cipla, Sun Pharma, L&T, Tata Motors PV, Dr Reddy’s Labs, Infosys, Eicher Motors, and Max Health. On the upside, IndiGo, Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank, HUL, Kotak Bank, BEL, Trent, Jio Financial, and HDFC Life led the gains.

In the broader markets, the Nifty MidCap index slipped 0.53 per cent, while the Nifty SmallCap index fell 0.64 per cent.

Sectorally, the Nifty Pharma index edged 0.6 per cent lower, Nifty IT declined 0.5 per cent, and Nifty Auto dropped 0.4 per cent. On the positive side, the Nifty Metal index rose 0.24 per cent.

Market Update at 10:22 AM: Indian stock markets traded sharply lower on Monday, dragged by heavy selling pressure in shares of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), ICICI Bank, Wipro, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Cipla, amid a cautious global mood.

The BSE Sensex opened near 83,072 levels, falling 498 points or 0.60 per cent, while the Nifty50 was at 25,560, down 134 points or 0.52 per cent.

Selling in Wipro shares was particularly steep, with the stock tumbling over 9 per cent after the IT company reported a Q3 consolidated profit decline of 7 per cent year-on-year to Rs 3,119 crore. Wipro’s Q4 guidance of 0–2 per cent quarter-on-quarter constant currency growth fell short of expectations, signalling ongoing demand softness, fewer working days and delays in deal ramp-ups.

RIL shares declined 2.2 per cent after the company reported a 1.6 per cent year-on-year rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 22,290 crore in Q3 FY26. RIL’s Q3 revenue grew 10 per cent to Rs 2.93 trillion, while Ebitda rose 6.1 per cent to Rs 50,932 crore, but margins contracted to 17.3 per cent from 18 per cent year-on-year.

ICICI Bank shares also fell, dropping 2.65 per cent after the lender posted in-line Q3 FY26 results. The bank’s Q3 profit fell 4 per cent year-on-year to Rs 11,317.9 crore, as provisions more than doubled to Rs 2,555.6 crore.

HDFC Bank bucked the broader trend with a modest decline, as its share price was down just 0.3 per cent following a reported Q3 standalone profit increase of 11.5 per cent year-on-year to Rs 18,653.8 crore, and net interest income up 6.4 per cent at Rs 32,615 crore.

Other major losers on the Nifty index included M&M, Bharti Airtel, Cipla, Sun Pharma, L&T, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Infosys, Eicher Motors and Max Healthcare.

On the contrary, IndiGo, Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank, HUL, Kotak Bank, BEL, Trent, Jio Financial and HDFC Life were among the Top Gainers.

In the broader markets, the Nifty MidCap index slipped 0.40 per cent and the Nifty SmallCap index declined 0.48 per cent.

Sector-wise, the Nifty Pharma index edged 0.6 per cent lower, the Nifty IT index was down 0.5 per cent and the Nifty Auto index fell 0.4 per cent. On the upside, the Nifty Metal index gained 0.24 per cent.

Globally, market sentiment remained cautious after US President Donald Trump vowed to levy tax on European countries opposing his plans to acquire Greenland, adding to risk-off trading.

Pre-Market Update at 7:57 AM: The Indian stock market is set for a weak opening on Monday, as global sentiment remains cautious. Gift Nifty traded around 25,592, at a discount of nearly 160 points versus the previous close of Nifty futures, signaling a gap-down start for domestic benchmarks.

On Friday, the Sensex gained 187.64 points (0.23 per cent) to close at 83,570.35, while the Nifty 50 ended 28.75 points (0.11 per cent) higher at 25,694.35, snapping a two-day losing streak led by IT heavyweights. This week, investor focus will be on Q3 earnings, US-Iran tensions, US-Europe tariff developments, India-US trade talks, movements in crude, gold and silver, FPI flows and key macroeconomic data. 

Asian markets traded mostly lower on Monday ahead of key Chinese data, with MSCI’s Asia-Pacific index outside Japan down 0.1 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.85 per cent and the Topix fell 0.46 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.18 per cent, while Kosdaq slipped 0.15 per cent. Hong Kong Hang Seng futures pointed to a weaker open.

Gift Nifty hovered around 25,592, nearly 160 points below Nifty futures’ previous close, indicating a soft start for domestic indices.

On Wall Street, US equities ended Friday’s session nearly flat but closed the week lower. The Dow Jones fell 83.11 points (0.17 per cent) to 49,359.33, the S&P 500 lost 4.46 points (0.06 per cent) to 6,940.01 and the Nasdaq declined 14.63 points (0.06 per cent) to 23,515.39. For the week, the S&P 500 slipped 0.38 per cent, the Nasdaq dropped 0.66 per cent and the Dow fell 0.29 per cent. 

Global sentiment weakened after US President Donald Trump threatened a fresh wave of tariffs on European Union members Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Finland, along with Britain and Norway, until the US is allowed to buy Greenland.

Bond markets in Japan moved sharply, with benchmark JGB yields rising to a near 27-year high. The 10-year JGB yield climbed 3.5 bps to 2.215 per cent, the highest since February 1999, while the two-year yield increased 0.5 bps to 1.2 per cent.

On the earnings front, Reliance Industries reported consolidated net profit of Rs 22,290 crore in Q3FY26, up 1.6 per cent year-on-year. Revenue rose 10.5 per cent YoY to Rs 2,69,496 crore. EBITDA increased 6.1 per cent YoY to Rs 50,932 crore, though margins contracted 70 bps to 17.3 per cent from 18 per cent YoY.

HDFC Bank posted net profit of Rs 18,653.75 crore for Q3FY26, up 11.4 per cent YoY, with Net Interest Income growing 6.4 per cent YoY to Rs 32,615 crore. Asset quality weakened sequentially, while total deposits rose 11.6 per cent and gross advances grew 11.9 per cent YoY.

Gold and silver prices surged to record highs on fears of a damaging US-Europe trade war. Spot gold jumped 1.6 per cent to USD 4,668.76 an ounce after touching USD 4,690.59, while silver climbed 3.2 per cent to USD 93.0211 and hit a peak of USD 94.1213 earlier.

The US dollar weakened as investors moved into safe-haven currencies like the yen and Swiss franc following Trump’s tariff remarks. The dollar index fell 0.19 per cent to 99.18. The greenback slid 0.45 per cent against the Swiss franc to 0.7983 and dropped 0.33 per cent to 157.59 yen. The euro rose 0.19 per cent to USD 1.1619 and the British pound gained 0.17 per cent to USD 1.3398.

Crude oil prices eased as tensions with Iran cooled. Brent crude slipped 0.41 per cent to USD 63.87 per barrel, while WTI fell 0.40 per cent to USD 59.20 per barrel.

For today, Sammaan Capital will remain on the F&O ban list.

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