21-Aug-2025 13:37
Sensex climbs 222 pts; Nifty trades tad above 25,100 level
The frontline indices traded with modest gains in the early-afternoon trade, extending their five-day rally on hopes of a potential GST rate cut. However, investors remained cautious ahead of the US Federal Reserve's annual symposium, awaiting signals on the future direction of interest rates. The Nifty traded tad above the 25,100 mark. Realty, pharma and oil & gas shares advanced, while auto, FMCG and PSU bank shares corrected.
At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, advanced 221.66 points or 0.27% to 82,079.50. The Nifty 50 index added 49.40 points or 0.20% to 25,102.25.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index advanced 0.07% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index jumped 0.19%.
The overall market breadth was positive, with more stocks declining than advancing. On the BSE, 2,227 stocks advanced, 1,742 declined, and 170 remained unchanged.
Economy:
India's private sector witnessed a sharp acceleration in business activity in August, with robust gains across both manufacturing and services, according to the latest HSBC Flash PMI data.
The HSBC Flash India Composite PMI Output Index surged to 65.2 in August, up from 61.1 in July, signaling one of the fastest rates of expansion in over a year.
The services sector led the upturn, with the HSBC Flash India Services PMI Business Activity Index climbing to 65.6, compared to 60.5 in July. This marks a significant boost in services output and reflects strong demand conditions and rising new business intakes.
Meanwhile, manufacturing also remained firmly in growth territory. The HSBC Flash India Manufacturing PMI Output Index rose to 64.2, up from 62.5 in July. The broader Manufacturing PMI, which includes new orders, employment, and inventories, edged up to 59.8, compared to 59.1 in the previous month.
India's eight core industries grew by 2% in July 2025 compared to the same month last year, according to data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Wednesday. The growth was driven by higher production in steel, cement, fertilisers, and electricity.
These eight sectors'coal, crude oil, natural gas, petroleum refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement, and electricity'account for 40.27% of the weight in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), making them key indicators of overall industrial performance.
Steel, which holds the highest weight (17.92%) in the index, surged 12.8% in July, buoyed by strong demand from government infrastructure projects. Cement output rose 11.7%, reflecting robust construction and infrastructure activity. Fertiliser production increased 2%, supported by healthy kharif sowing and good monsoon rains. Electricity generation edged up by 0.5%.
However, several sectors saw declines. Coal production dropped 12.3% due to heavy monsoon rains. Crude oil and natural gas output fell by 1.3% and 3.2% respectively, while refinery production dipped 1%.
Cumulatively, core sector growth for April'July FY26 stood at 1.6% year-on-year. Steel and cement led the gains with growth of 8.5% and 8.9%, respectively.
The revised core sector growth for June 2025 stood at 2.2%, pointing to a steady industrial trend in the early months of the fiscal year.
Gainers & Losers:
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (up 2.22%), Bajaj Finance (up 1.46%), Cipla (up 1.39%), Bajaj Finserv (up 1.30%) and Bharat Electronics (up 1.17%) were the major Nifty50 gainers.
Bajaj Auto (down 1.97%), Jio Financial Services (down 1.43%), Hero MotoCorp (down 1.24%), Power Grid Corporation of India (down 1.20%) and Tata Consumer Products (down 1.29%) were the major Nifty50 Losers.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Shanti Gold International jumped 2.41% after the company's standalone net profit surged 174.08% to Rs 24.64 crore in Q1 FY26, compared with Rs 8.99 crore posted in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations increased 22.07% YoY to Rs 292.77 crore in Q1 FY26.
Fedbank Financial Services rose 2.57% after the company's board is scheduled to meet on 25 August 2025, to consider raising Rs 2,500 crore via non-convertible debentures (NCDs).
Jupiter Wagons surged 9.37% after the company said that its material unlisted subsidiary, Jupiter Tatravagonka Railwheel Factory, has received a letter of intent (LoI) for the supply of wheelsets for the Vande Bharat train.
Nazara Technologies fell 6.52% after the Lok Sabha passed the Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which bans real money online games citing risks of gambling addiction, money laundering and financial fraud.
Godrej Properties advanced 1.50% after the company announced that it had emerged as the highest bidder for a 7.825-acre residential land parcel in Hyderabad
Global Markets:
European stocks traded mixed on Thursday as traders will keep an eye on the upcoming economic data from the region.
Asian markets were broadly mixed as investors braced for three days of potentially market-moving news from the Federal Reserve's annual symposium in Jackson Hole.
Central bankers from around the world will attend the event, which begins later in the day, although the key focus will be Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech on Friday as traders look for clues on the chances of a September rate cut.
Overnight stateside, two of the three key benchmarks ended the session on Wednesday in declines as tech stocks dragged the market lower.
The broad market S&P 500 index slipped 0.24% to close at 6,395.78, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 0.67% and settled at 21,172.86. Wednesday marked a fourth day of losses for the S&P 500 and a second negative session for the Nasdaq.
Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was the outlier, adding 16.04 points, or 0.04%, and settling at 44,938.31.
Minutes from the Fed's July gathering released yesterday, when policymakers voted to keep rates steady, suggested that Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman and Governor Christopher Waller were alone in pushing for a rate cut at the meeting.
Fed Chair Powell had said he is reluctant to cut rates because of expected tariff-driven price pressures this summer.
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