BSE, NSE end flat after volatile session; Asian Paints tanks 8% post earnings 

Indian equity benchmarks concluded Monday’s session nearly unchanged after witnessing significant intraday volatility, with the BSE Sensex marginally gaining 9.83 points or 0.01 per cent to close at 79,496.15, while the NSE Nifty 50 ended slightly lower by 6.90 points or 0.03 per cent at 24,141.30.

The markets opened on a weaker note, with the Sensex beginning the day at 79,298.46 compared to its previous close of 79,486.32, while the Nifty started at 24,087.25 against its last close of 24,148.20.

The indices recovered from early losses but failed to maintain momentum through the session.

Asian Paints emerged as the biggest laggard, plummeting 8 per cent following disappointing earnings results. Other major losers included Britannia, which declined 5.95 per cent, followed by Apollo Hospitals dropping 3.59 per cent, Cipla falling 2.69 per cent, and ONGC sliding 2.02 per cent.

On the gaining side, Power Grid Corporation led the advance, surging 4.35 per cent after the company announced an increased FY27 capex target from ₹27,000 crores to ₹40,000 crores, along with a substantial seven-year capex forecast of ₹3 trillion. Other notable gainers included Trent, which rose 2.60 per cent, followed by IT companies HCL Tech advancing 1.77 per cent, Infosys gaining 1.59 per cent, and Tech Mahindra up by 1.41 per cent.

Sectoral performance was mixed, with the IT index emerging as the top performer, gaining over 1.2 per cent, while the healthcare index declined by more than 1.5 per cent. The broader market significantly underperformed the benchmarks, as reflected in the market breadth. Among the 4,213 stocks traded on BSE, 1,530 advanced while 2,568 declined, and 115 remained unchanged.

“Today, the benchmark indices witnessed volatile trading session, after a roller coaster activity,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research, Kotak Securities, adding that “the current market texture is volatile and non-directional hence level based trading would be the ideal strategy for the traders.”

The market saw 259 stocks reaching their 52-week highs, while 57 touched their 52-week lows. Six stocks hit the upper circuit limits, while five stocks hit the lower circuit limits during the session.

In the broader market, the Nifty Next 50 gained 0.29 per cent to close at 69,973.75, while the Nifty Midcap Select declined by 0.20 per cent to end at 12,495.70. The banking sector demonstrated resilience, with the Nifty Bank index rising 0.61 per cent to close at 51,876.75, and the Nifty Financial Services index advancing 0.53 per cent to finish at 23,959.95.

Ajit Mishra, SVP Research at Religare Broking Ltd., noted, “The alignment of the banking and IT sectors has sparked hopes for a potential recovery, but sustained momentum in these areas is crucial for a meaningful rebound; otherwise, the market may remain range-bound.”

Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities Ltd., pointed out that “gains in select banking and IT stocks shielded the markets from yet another fall as the falling rupee and FII fund outflows continue to keep investors on the edge.”

Looking ahead, Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, cautioned about near-term challenges: “The actions of FIIs are dominating the current market momentum, which is backed by a weak set of earnings and expectations from Trump policy. The risk of further downgrades in Nifty earnings casts clouds over investor sentiment, while the IT sector continued to outperform due to the strong US dollar and in anticipation of a revamp in US IT spending.”

Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities, observed that “though market declined in the last couple of sessions, the sharp downside momentum was absent,” suggesting that the “market is moving in a broader high low range of 24,600-23,800 levels.”

The mutual fund industry showed strong performance, with Hitesh Thakkar, Acting CEO of ITI Mutual Fund, reporting that the industry has reached an all-time high AUM of ₹6,725,614.61. “The month shows investors have preferred hybrid funds due to the ongoing volatility in the equity markets,” he added.