The benchmark indices witnessed a sharp sell-off on Tuesday, with the Sensex plunging about 900 points and the Nifty slipping below 23,850, weighed down by weak global cues, foreign fund outflows and profit booking after a recent rally. The decline mirrored losses across Asian markets, including a trading halt in South Korea after the KOSPI tumbled over 9%. Selling pressure intensified in IT and metal stocks amid concerns over softer demand and weaker commodity prices. A stronger US dollar, a weaker rupee and a spike in India VIX added to investor caution. Pharma and healthcare stocks, however, bucked the broader market weakness.

The S&P BSE Sensex tanked 893.39 points or 1.16% to 76,200.68. The Nifty 50 index fell 278.80 points or 1.16% to 23,824.10.

 

Infosys (down 3.42%), HDFC Bank (down 1.75%) and Reliance Industries (down 1.55%) were major Nifty drags today.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.88% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.62%.

The market breadth was weak. On the NSE, 1020 shares rose and 2280 shares fell. A total of 99 shares were unchanged.

The NSE’s India VIX, a gauge of the market’s expectation of volatility over the near term, surged 8.56% to 13.94.

Economy:

Growth in India’s eight core industries slowed sharply to 0.5% in May 2026, the second-lowest reading in 21 months, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on 22 June 2026.

The slowdown was broad-based, with five of the eight core sectors posting contractions during the month.

Crude oil output declined 4.6% in May, compared with a 3.9% fall in April and a 1.8% decline a year earlier. Natural gas production also remained weak, contracting 4.9%, marking its steepest decline in three months. Fertiliser output shrank 0.9%, extending its losing streak to a third consecutive month, although the pace of contraction moderated from declines of 8.6% in April and 24.6% in March.

Among the core sectors, only steel, cement and electricity registered growth. Electricity output emerged as the strongest performer, rising 8.7% on the back of a favourable base, as the sector had contracted 4.7% in May 2025.

Steel production expanded 5%, but the growth rate eased to its weakest level in 13 months. Cement output growth improved marginally to 8.4% from 8.2% in April.

The latest data point to a broad loss of momentum in industrial activity, with growth largely supported by electricity, cement and steel production.

Separately, India’s private sector activity moderated in June, with all three key Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) readings easing from the previous month, according to flash estimates released by HSBC and S&P Global.

The Manufacturing PMI slipped to 54.5 in June from 55.0 in May, signalling slower but continued expansion in factory activity. The Services PMI fell to 57.3 from 59.8, indicating a moderation in growth across the services sector.

As a result, the Composite PMI declined to 57.4 in June from 59.3 in the previous month, reflecting a softer pace of expansion in overall business activity while remaining firmly in growth territory.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark federal paper declined 0.36% to 6.826 compared with previous session close of 6.851.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 94.7300 compared with its close of 94.6300 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 05 August 2026 settlement fell 0.96% to Rs 146,722.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback’s value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.11% to 101.14.

The United States 10-year bond yield declined 0.36% to 4.487.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for July 2026 settlement fell 49 cents or 0.63% to $77.41 a barrel. Oil prices extended their decline after concerns over supply disruptions eased. Sentiment improved after U.S. Vice President JD Vance said progress had been made in talks with Iran and that the Strait of Hormuz remained open.

Global Market:

Dow Jones futures were down about 250 points, signalling a weak start for U.S. equities later in the day.

European market declined on Tuesday as optimism surrounding a potential U.S.-Iran peace agreement faded, shifting investor focus back to concerns that interest rates could remain elevated for longer.

Asian market witnessed a broad sell-off, with South Korea’s benchmark index plunging 10%, triggering panic across regional bourses. The sharp decline followed a technology-led sell-off on Wall Street, as investors reassessed lofty valuations amid growing concerns that the long-running AI-driven rally may be losing momentum.

Investor sentiment was also weighed down by rising expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve may need to tighten monetary policy further to contain inflationary pressures.

Investors are increasingly factoring in the possibility of a more hawkish Federal Reserve and a faster pace of policy tightening under new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh.

Market participants are now awaiting the release of the U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index on Thursday, a key inflation indicator closely monitored by the Federal Reserve.

According to CME Group’s FedWatch tool, futures markets are pricing in a 54% probability of at least two 25-basis-point rate hikes before the end of the year, up sharply from 15.2% a week earlier.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 ended lower on Monday as weakness in technology stocks weighed on sentiment. Investors also tracked developments in U.S.-Iran negotiations and positioned themselves ahead of key inflation data.

The S&P 500 fell 0.37% to 7,472.79, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.32% to 26,166.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend, rising 148.01 points, or 0.29%, to close higher.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Emcure Pharmaceuticals jumped 1.55% to Rs 1,818.80 after a foreign brokerage reiterated its ‘Buy’ rating on the stock and raised its target price to Rs 2,100 from Rs 1,970.

Vedanta tumbled 7.73% after the stock witnessed heavy block deal activity in early trade on Tuesday. According to media reports, promoter entity Twin Star Holdings was looking to offload up to 6.5 crore shares through block deals at a floor price of Rs 291 per share. The indicated price represented a discount of about 4.9% to Vedanta’s previous closing price on the NSE.

Info Edge (India) rose 2.79% after the company shared a detailed update on its startup investment portfolio, highlighting strong gains from its artificial intelligence (AI), deeptech and consumer technology bets. Overall, Info Edge and the alternative investment funds (AIFs) it manages have invested about Rs 4,900 crore across 135 startups. The portfolio is now valued at around Rs 41,300 crore, representing an 8.4x multiple and an estimated gross IRR of approximately 33%. The company noted that some startups are classified under multiple themes, such as consumer AI firms that are included in both the consumer technology and AI portfolios. As a result, theme-wise figures should not be aggregated.

Network People Services Technologies (NPST) surged 5.54% after the company has received an order from a Maharatna Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) to develop a UPI Third-Party Application Provider (TPAP) application.

Syrma SGS Technology rallied 3.05% after the company entered into an agreement with Kaga Electronics India to develop EMS manufacturing facility in India through a joint venture (JV). Under the agreement, the company and Kaga Electronics will set up a joint venture (JV) company to establish, develop and operate a technologically advanced, state of the art EMS manufacturing facility together in India focusing on Japanese clients. In the JV that is proposed to be incorporated, the company will own 60% of the equity shares for total consideration of Rs 15 crore and Kaga will own 40% of the equity shares of the JV for total consideration of 10 crore.

Interarch Building Solutions added 1.19% after the company has secured a contract worth Rs 165 crore from a domestic customer to manufacturing steel building system.

Birla Corporation added 1.32% after the company announced commencement of commercial production of coal at Bikram Coal Mine with effect from 22 June 2026.

Diffusion Engineers rose 2.55%. The company announced that it has secured a domestic order worth approximately Rs 7.49 crore for the supply of flux-cored wire to the defence industry.

Lemon Tree Hotels rose 0.13%. The company announced the signing of an 85-room hotel in Janakpur, Nepal, strengthening its international presence in South Asia.

Initial Public Offer (IPO):

Turtlemint Fintech Solutions received bids for 3,91,77,362 shares as against 3,29,01,878 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:15 IST on 23 June 2026. The issue was subscribed 1.19 times.

The issue opened for bidding on 19 June 2026 and it will close on 23 June 2026. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 144 and 152 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 98 equity shares and multiples thereof.

Waterways Leisure Tourism received bids for 7,50,060 shares as against 41,84,004 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:15 IST on 23 June 2026. The issue was subscribed 0.18 times.

The issue opened for bidding on 23 June 2026 and it will close on 25 June 2026. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 769 and 808 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 18 equity shares and multiples thereof.

Advit Jewels received bids for 8,79,02,900 shares as against 83,79,300 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:15 IST on 23 June 2026. The issue was subscribed 10.49 times.

The issue opened for bidding on 23 June 2026 and it will close on 25 June 2026. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 130 and 138 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 100 equity shares and multiples thereof.

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