Domestic equity benchmarks ended in the red today, breaking a seven-session winning streak as global cues and geopolitical tensions weighed on investor sentiment. The Pahalgam terror attack cast a shadow over the markets, with escalating tensions between India and Pakistan prompting a risk-off mood.
Adding to the market nerves was the monthly expiry of Nifty50 F&O contracts, which further amplified volatility. After touching an intraday high of 24,347.85, the Nifty slipped to close below the 24,250 mark. Realty, FMCG and IT shares were under pressure. On the other hand, pharma and metal shares bucked the trend.
Sentiment turned especially cautious after India announced a series of stern diplomatic and economic actions in response to the attack in Jammu & Kashmir that claimed 26 lives. Measures included the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, closure of the Wagah-Attari border, and cancellation of Pakistani visas, among others.
The S&P BSE Sensex declined 315.06 points or 0.39% to 79,801.43. The Nifty 50 index lost 82.25 points or 0.34% to 24,246.70. In the previous seven trading sessions, Sensex and Nifty jumped 8.49% and 8.62%, respectively.
Hindustan Unilever (down 4%), Bharti Airtel (down 1.96%) and ICICI Bank (down 1.53%) were major drags.
The broader market underperformed the headline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.16% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.01%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1887 shares rose and 2063 shares fell. A total of 136 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 1.81% to 16.25.
Economy:
On the macroeconomic front, the World Bank on Wednesday revised its growth outlook for India, trimming its forecast by 0.4 percentage points to 6.3% for the current fiscal year. The revision reflects rising global uncertainty, which the institution warned could dampen growth prospects across South Asia.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper grew 1.34% to 6.416, compared with the previous close of 6.428.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 85.2925 compared with its close of 85.4500 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2025 settlement rose 1.06% to Rs 95,730.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.65% to 99.26.
The United States 10-year bond yield shed 0.98% to 4.344.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2025 settlement rose 44 cents or 0.67% to $66.56 a barrel.
Global Markets:
Dow Jones futures were down 166 points on Thursday, setting the stage for a weak Wall Street open.
European shares declined on Thursday as investors are digesting earnings releases from Unilever, Banco Sabadell, Sanofi, Eni, BNP Paribas and Dassault Systemes.
Asian market ended mixed, following gains on Wall Street driven by renewed optimism over potential progress in U.S.-China trade relations.
In the latest development, China indicated a willingness to engage in trade talks with the United States. However, it emphasized that it would not participate in negotiations under continued threat of sanctions or tariffs from the U.S. administration. This dual stance contributed to cautious optimism among global investors.
In South Korea, advance estimates released Thursday showed that GDP contracted by 0.1% in the first quarter of 2025, signaling potential economic headwinds in the region.
On Wall Street, the three major indices closed higher overnight, supported by hopes that trade tensions may ease in the near term. Additionally, President Donald Trump signaled that he does not intend to remove Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, a move that appeared to reassure financial markets.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.07%, while the S&P 500 index gained 1.67%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 2.50%.
On Thursday, investors will look for quarterly earnings reports from Alphabet, Intel and PepsiCo. On the economic data front, durable goods orders and weekly jobless claims are also due.
Stocks In Spotlight:
Hindustan Unilever (HUL) dropped 4%. The company reported a 3.61% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 2,493 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with Rs 2,406 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations rose 2.08% to Rs 15,000 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with Rs 14,693 crore in Q4 FY24. Meanwhile, the company’s board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 24.
Nestle India rose 0.03%. The company standalone net profit declined 5.21% to Rs 885.41 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with Rs 934.17 crore posted in Q4 FY24. However, revenue from operations jumped 4.48% to Rs 5,503.9 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 5,267.6 crore posted in Q4 FY24. Meanwhile, the company’s board recommended a final dividend of Rs 10 per equity share.
Tata Consumer Products added 0.83%. The company reported a 52.06% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 407.07 crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with Rs 267.71 crore in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 17.35% to Rs 4,608.22 crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with Rs 3,926.94 crore in Q4 FY24.
Bajaj Housing Finance rose 0.30%. The company reported a 53.84% rise in standalone net profit to Rs 586.68 crore on a 25.62% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 2,507.96 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with Q4 FY24.
Syngene International dropped 12.83% after its lacklustre Q4 performance and a cautious FY26 outlook spooked investors. On a consolidated basis, net profit of Syngene International declined 2.81% to Rs 183.30 crore while net sales rose 11.03% to Rs 1018 crore in Q4 March 2025 over Q4 March 2024. In its outlook for FY26, the Syngene management anticipates the reported revenue growth will likely be in the mid-single digits. They also foresee the EBITDA margin moderating from current levels to the mid-twenties and a year-on-year decline in profit after tax.
Divis Laboratories surged 5.19% to Rs 6225 after a leading foreign brokerage maintained its 'Buy' rating on the stock, setting a price target of Rs 7,050 per share.
SAMHI Hotels surged 11.26% after the company announced a strategic partnership with Singapore's GIC to establish an investment platform focused on upscale and premium hotel assets across India. The partnership will be incubated with five of SAMHI's hotels with more than 1,000 rooms (the "Seed Assets") valued at around Rs 2,200 crore with GIC acquiring a significant minority stake in the underlying SPVs that own these hotels.
Tamilnad Mercantile Bank surged 3.21% after the banks' net profit rose 15.35% to Rs 291.90 crore on 8.78% increase in total income to Rs 1,542.06 crore in Q4 March 2025 over Q4 March 2024.
Dalmia Bharat gained 3.96% after the company’s consolidated net profit surged 38.09% to Rs 435 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 315 crore posted in Q4 FY24. However, revenue from operations declined 5.01% YoY to Rs 4,091 crore posted in Q4 FY25.
Persistent Systems shed 0.10% after the company’s net profit advanced 6.1% to Rs 395.76 crore on a 5.87% increase in revenue to Rs 3,242.11 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q3 FY25.
Rallis India dropped 4.39% after the company’s standalone net loss widened to Rs 32 crore in Q4 FY25 as against a net loss of Rs 21 crore reported in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations declined 1.37% YoY to Rs 430 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025. Meanwhile, the company’s board has recommended a dividend of Rs 2.50 per share for the financial year 2024-25. The dividend, if approved by the shareholders at the ensuing Annual General Meeting of the company, will be paid within five days of the AGM.
Vascon Engineers jumped 3.16% after the company received a letter of intent (LoI) worth Rs 85.43 crore from Yucca Promoters LLP, Pune, for the construction of a commercial building at Kalyani Nagar, Pune.
Black Box hit an upper circuit of 10% after the company announced that it had achieved order wins totaling Rs 1,550 crore in Q4 of the financial year 2024–25.
Thyrocare Technologies surged 10% after the healthcare service provider reported a 22.05% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 21.70 crore on a 21.34% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 187.16 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q4 FY24.