Prime Highlights :
Appreciation in Indian benchmark indices faded after yesterday’s rally as investors reduced gains in blue chips.
Appreciation in broader markets was more widespread, with leaders in the realty, FMCG, and energy sectors.
Key Facts :
Sensex lost 267 points to close at 82,263.
Appreciation in Nifty50 decreased by 72 points, closing below 25,000 at 24,989.
Key Background :
Indian share markets experienced a weak pullback on May 16, 2025, after sharp gains in the last session. Trimming was majorly on account of investors selling their holdings after a record rally on May 15, after U.S. President Donald Trump’s comments were an indicator of India’s desperation to reduce tariffs on American products. It led to enhanced investor hopes for relief from trade tensions.
While, on Thursday, the market was turned risk-averse. The selling pressure originated in big-caps such as Bharti Airtel, HCL Technologies, and IndusInd Bank. Thus, the BSE Sensex declined by 0.32% (267 points) and the Nifty50 declined by 0.29% (72 points). However, some individual heavyweights such as Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, and ITC kept the downside from becoming even more gigantic.
Sectoral performance was heterogenous. Nifty Realty topped with a 1.3% gain on the back of robust investor appetite for realestate shares. Upticks in the FMCG, energy, media, and auto space were also witnessed. IT and metal stocks fell sharply, each losing around 1%, due to fears of global growth and profit taking.
Small and midcap stocks were strong, outperforming frontline indices by more than a percentage point. The BSE Midcap index gained 0.71%, while the Smallcap index gained 0.97%, indicating continued investor interest in hope of bigger market moves.
On the corporate side, Q4 numbers were in the spotlight once more. BLS International Services said profit grew almost 70% year-on-year, and JSW Energy posted a 20% rise in net profit after seeing strong operating numbers. A series of large-cap companies such as Hyundai Motor India and BHEL were also due to post results later during the day, keeping market players in suspense.
In general, day trading registered a positive consolidation phase with investor sentiment divided between optimism regarding leadership on the global scene and pre-earnings and global macro data jitters.
