Sensex, Nifty Slip as Banking Weakness Offsets IT Rally

Indian equities turned mildly bearish in early trade on Thursday, July 30, as weak global cues and renewed oil concerns outweighed strength in technology shares. At around 10:05 am, the Sensex was near 77,450, lower by about 200 points or 0.25 per cent, while the Nifty 50 slipped below 24,200, down roughly 60 points or 0.25 per cent. The indices had opened nearly flat before selling pressure increased.

The broader market was weaker than the benchmarks. Nifty Bank declined around 0.5 per cent, dragged by ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank. The Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices were down around 0.3 to 0.4 per cent each, showing cautious participation outside Large-Cap IT stocks.

Sectorally, Nifty IT gained about 1.7 per cent as Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies and TCS attracted buying. Nifty Auto rose around 0.5 per cent, while Nifty Pharma advanced nearly 0.4 per cent. On the losing side, Nifty Realty dropped about 0.8 per cent, followed by Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Bank, which fell around 0.5 per cent each. Private banking, media and energy shares also traded lower.

Among individual stocks, Balkrishna Industries jumped around 10 per cent after its June-quarter net profit rose 56.4 per cent to Rs 451 crore and EBITDA margin improved to 21.5 per cent. Syngene International fell over 8 per cent after reporting a Q1 net loss of Rs 9 crore, compared with a profit of Rs 86.8 crore a year earlier.

Dabur India declined around 4 per cent despite a 15 per cent rise in profit, as investors remained cautious about the growth outlook. Thangamayil Jewellery dropped over 9 per cent even though profit rose 86.2 per cent, with margin compression weighing on sentiment.

Institutional flows offered some support. According to the latest provisional cash-market data for July 29, foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Rs 2,981.87 crore, while domestic institutional investors purchased shares worth a net Rs 998.02 crore. July 30 flow data will be available after the closing bell.

Global cues remained uncomfortable. The US Federal Reserve kept its policy rate unchanged at 3.5 to 3.75 per cent, but the 9-3 vote unsettled investors. Overnight, the Dow Jones fell 2.19 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 1.52 per cent and the Nasdaq dropped 1.74 per cent. Asian markets were mixed, while Brent crude hovered near USD 90 per barrel after surging almost 8 per cent in the previous session.

For the rest of the session, Nifty’s 24,190 to 24,145 zone remains an immediate support area, while a fall below 24,085 could strengthen downside momentum. On the upside, traders will watch 24,300, followed by 24,500 to 24,600. Earnings from Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Mankind Pharma and Vedanta will keep stock-specific volatility elevated.

The market remains sensitive to earnings, crude oil and global rate signals, so near-term moves may stay volatile.

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