Where is the market headed?
The week ended on a weak note, with markets completely devoid of any positive cues. Banking results from Axis Bank have unsettled sentiment, creating concerns that the upcoming earnings season may turn out weak. Markets are not allowing any positive developments to reflect in stock prices. Additionally, the India-US tariff treaty appears close to finalisation, which may provide the next set of triggers alongside major earnings results expected this weekend from large banks and Reliance. FIIs continue selling, with no signs of fresh buying, adding to the prevailing absence of positive triggers in the market today.
Market Overview
Nifty has finally broken down after two days of minor uptick, registering a decline of 0.57% today. The index is now back to levels seen in early May, marking over two months of consolidation around the 25,000 mark. That key 25,000 level, which had held firm over the past few sessions, was breached today, with Nifty closing at 24,968.
Nifty Next 50
Nifty Junior also slipped sharply, down 0.7%. While it is not looking as weak as Nifty overall, it is certainly showing significant weakness in the very short term.
Nifty Mid and Small Cap
Mid caps moved down 0.67% and small caps also declined 0.68%, making it a very even down day across the market.
Bank Nifty
Nifty Bank, however, was down the most at 0.96%, impacted by the banking results.
GOLD
Gold was up 0.6%. This is a common occurrence, whenever markets face pressure, Indian gold prices tend to rise. Gold is now priced at ₹9,841 per gram.
Advance Decline Ratio
Declines dominated from the very start. Within the first hour, declines surged while advances fell and stayed subdued all day. The final tally stood at 127 advances against 373 declines, reflecting very poor market breadth today.
Heat Maps
Very few stocks managed to gain today. Bajaj Finance and Tata Steel showed some recovery later in the session, while Wipro was up from the start, surprising on the positive side. Despite recent bonus and special dividend announcements, HDFC Bank closed down 1.48%. Other major declines included Kotak Bank down 1.4%, Axis Bank sharply down 5.2%, Sriram Finance down 3%, and State Bank of India down 0.7%. Stocks like Bharti Airtel and BEL, which had been performing reasonably well recently, also saw notable declines.
The Nifty Next 50 showed a similar trend. CG Power, Motherson Sumi (affected by corporate action, so today’s 34% drop isn’t actual and will adjust by tomorrow), HAL, IOC, BPCL, Adani Green, GodrejCP, ICICIGI, all closed in the red. Green was seen in only a handful of names like Siemens and Indigo. No real big positive moves were visible anywhere in the market today.
Sectoral Overview
The downtrend in Defence stocks continued, with the sector closing 2.32% lower. Private Banks fell 1.5%, while the overall banking space was down 0.9%, and Financial Services declined 0.94%. After defence, most of the market pressure was concentrated in banking and finance-related sectors.
Media stood out with a 0.9% gain, but given its low weight in the overall market, this move was driven by just one or two stocks. Metals managed to survive today’s fall, closing slightly positive, supported by JSW Steel’s strong numbers released in the second half of the day. The Metals index was up 0.37%. India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) also ended marginally higher at 0.13%. No other major gainers were seen across sectors.
Sector of the Day
Nifty Private Bank Index
Private banks gapped down and stayed weak throughout the session, closing 1.4% lower. This kind of move, where the index gaps down and does not even attempt to retest the breakdown point, is considered a negative technical signal. However, the sector remains within the same congestion zone seen since mid-April, so there is a possibility of support emerging at the lower end. Axis Bank, RBL Bank, HDFC Bank, Kotak Bank, and IDFC were among the most impacted stocks in this space.
Nifty Ind Defence
Defence stocks continued to fall, with names like Data Patterns, BDL, BEML, Astra Microwave, and Hindustan Aeronautics seeing declines. With wars and conflicts not in the current market narrative, investors are choosing to exit defence positions for now. However, any future geopolitical tension could likely bring these stocks back into focus.
