Post Session: Quick Review

The Indian benchmarks widened their losses till last leg of trade with Nifty and Sensex settling below the psychological 24,500 and 80,300 levels respectively.  After trading in green initially, markets spent their entire day with losses.  Weakness in global markets pressurized the domestic markets to trade lower during the day. As for broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index ended with cut of over two and half percent, while Small cap index concluded with 3.81% losses.

Markets made slightly positive start but soon entered into red as investors reacted to weak global cues and an uptrend in oil prices overnight amid heightened tensions in the Middle East. Traders got cautious, as the latest bulletin from the Reserve Bank of India has stated that India's inflation is on a downward trajectory, but there is still significant ground to cover. The final stretch of disinflation hinges on controlling food inflation and mitigating its spillover effects on inflation expectations and core inflation. Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,261.83 crore on October 21. In afternoon session, markets continued to reel under pressure. Invertors overlooked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s statement that India is poised to continue its sustained growth trajectory and enhance its contribution to global growth significantly. She also noted that at the current rate, India is likely to be the world's third-largest economy by 2027. In late afternoon trade, indices added more losses to end near day’s low levels as traders sold off their riskier stocks..

On the global front, European markets were trading lower amid rising inflation expectations and concerns over U.S. fiscal deficit. Asian markets ended mostly lower as Middle East tensions persisted and rising bond yields made investors rethink about rate cut chances. Back home, ratings agency ICRA has said that Indian apparel exporters are expected to register a 9-11 per cent revenue expansion in current fiscal (FY25) aided primarily by gradual liquidation of retail inventory in key end markets and a shift in global sourcing to India.

The BSE Sensex ended at 80,220.72, down by 930.55 points or 1.15% after trading in a range of 80,149.53 and 81,504.24. There were 1 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index, while 1 stock remained unchanged. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 2.52%, while Small cap index was down by 3.81%. (Provisional)

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU down by 3.55%, Industrials down by 3.51%, Realty down by 3.29%, Metal down by 2.99% and Capital Goods was down by 2.95%, while there were no gaining sectoral indices on the BSE.  (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were ICICI Bank up by 0.67%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.62%, Tata Steel down by 2.94%, Power Grid down by 2.92%, SBI down by 2.91% and Tata Motors down by 2.64% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India's article on 'State of the Economy' published in the October Bulletin has said India's growth outlook is supported by robust domestic engines and private investment showing some encouraging signs despite geopolitical tensions. It said the global economy remained resilient in the first half of 2024, with declining inflation supporting household spending.

It stated stable growth momentum amid monetary policy easing is becoming the prevailing theme across most economies. It said 'In spite of geopolitical tensions, India's growth outlook is supported by robust domestic engines.'

It also noted that some high-frequency indicators have, however, shown a slackening of momentum in the second quarter of 2024-25, partly attributable to idiosyncratic factors like unusually heavy rains in August and September. The article authored by a team led by RBI deputy governor Michael Debabrata Patra said ‘Looking ahead, private investment is showing some encouraging signs in terms of lead indicators while consumption spending is shaping up for a festival season revival.’

The CNX Nifty ended at 24,472.10, down by 309.00 points or 1.25% after trading in a range of 24,445.80 and 24,882.00. There were 1 stocks advancing against 49 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were ICICI Bank up by 0.67%. On the flip side, Adani Enterprises down by 3.88%, Bharat Electronics down by 3.77%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.70%, Coal India down by 3.51% and Tata Steel down by 2.99% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 52.2 points or 0.63% to 8,266.04, France’s CAC fell 52.75 points or 0.7% to 7,483.48 and Germany’s DAX was down by 32.97 points or 0.17% to 19,428.22.

Asian markets ended mostly down on Tuesday pressured by mixed Wall Street signals overnight and rising bond yields as investors reined in expectations for bigger US interest rate cuts and caution ahead of the US presidential election. Meanwhile, persisted middle-east worries also weighed on Asian shares. Japanese shares declined amid concerns that the ruling party may lose its outright majority in the lower house in October 27 election. Although, Chinese and Hong Kong shares gained after China's central bank PBoC conducted its first operation of the Securities, Funds, and Insurance Companies Swap Facility (SFISF) aiming to leverage the role of financial institutions better in stabilizing China's capital market.