Key equity indices traded with substantial losses in mid-morning trade, as investor sentiment remained cautious following the Pahalgam terror attack. The incident cast a shadow over the markets, with escalating tensions between India and Pakistan triggering a risk-off mood. Additionally, investors are awaiting more Q4 earnings reports from the companies, the upcoming Fed meeting, and key global developments. The Nifty slipped below the 23,900 level.
PSU Bank shares witnessed selling pressure for third consecutive trading session.
At 11:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 1047.80 points or 1.31% to 78,748.41. The Nifty 50 index dropped 355.75 points or 1.47% to 23,890.95.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 3.24% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 3.57%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 474 shares rose and 3,266 shares fell. A total of 133 shares were unchanged.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty PSU Bank index fell 2.72% to 6,503.65. The Index declined 3.43% in the three trading sessions.
Punjab & Sind Bank (down 4.28%), Union Bank of India (down 4.14%), Bank of India (down 4.01%), Punjab National Bank (down 3.99%), Central Bank of India (down 3.97%), UCO Bank (down 3.87%), Indian Overseas Bank (down 3.54%), Canara Bank (down 3.08%), State Bank of India (down 3.04%) and Bank of Maharashtra (down 2.73%) declined.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Cyient tanked 8.70% after the company’s consolidated net profit tumbled 5.33% to Rs 186.40 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with 196.90 crore in Q4 FY24.
Rites fell 4.06%. The company has announced that it has received a work order from Mahanadi Coalfields (MCL) for providing detailed engineering and project management consultancy services, valued at Rs 28 crore.
Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy hit a lower circuit of 5%. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 55.38 crore in Q4 FY25, steeply higher than Rs 1.45 crore posted in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations zoomed 113.84% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 2,519.11 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025.
Global Market:
Asian stocks advanced on Friday, following a third consecutive day of gains on Wall Street. The rally was led by technology stocks, as investor sentiment improved with the U.S. signaling a softer stance on tariffs.
In Japan, inflation data showed Tokyo’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.5% year-on-year in April, up from 2.9% in March, reaching a two-year high. The core CPI, which excludes fresh food prices, increased to 3.4%, beating market forecasts of 3.2% and rising from 2.4% in the previous month.
The core-core CPI, which excludes both fresh food and energy and is closely monitored by the Bank of Japan, climbed to 3.1%, up from 2.2% in March. This reading remains above the central bank's 2% inflation target.
On Wall Street, all three major U.S. indices closed higher. The S&P 500 gained 2.03%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.74%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.23%.
The tech sector led the gains, with Amazon.com Inc. and NVIDIA Corporation rising over 3% each after both companies reported strong demand for AI data centers.
Market optimism was also supported by expectations of easing trade tensions. President Donald Trump stated that the U.S. had met with Chinese officials earlier in the day but did not provide details. This statement contrasted with Beijing’s denial of ongoing trade talks, leaving the status of China-U.S. negotiations unclear.
In economic data, U.S. initial jobless claims for the week ended April 19 rose to 222,000, in line with forecasts and slightly up from 216,000 the prior week. Despite ongoing concerns about the economic impact of tariffs, claims remained within a stable range.