Sensex, Nifty decline on concerns over US tariff imposition

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Thursday after US President Donald Trump announced the imposition of a 25 per cent tariff on all goods coming from India starting August 1 and an unspecified penalty for buying Russian crude oil and military equipment.

Despite the weak start, the indices staged a sharp recovery, but selling pressure re-emerged towards the fag of the session. However, buying in some heavyweight stocks restricted the downward trend, traders said.

Halting its two-day rally, the 30-share BSE index declined 296.28 points, or 0.36 per cent, to settle at 81,185.58 after recovering some lost ground during the afternoon trade. During the morning session, the gauge tanked 786.71 points, or 0.96 per cent, to 80,695.15.

As many as 2,418 stocks declined, while 1,598 advanced and 137 remained unchanged on the BSE.

The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 86.70 points or 0.35 per cent to 24,768.35.

"Following a turbulent start driven by fresh tariff threats, the Indian market started on a pessimistic note. However, the domestic market attempted a strong recovery, but by the end of the day, it closed with marginal losses on a monthly expiry day.

"Investors gravitated toward domestically oriented, non-discretionary players, especially FMCG, which offered attractive valuations, demand outlook and relative insulation from tariff risks. In contrast, oil & gas stocks were the worst hit due to US warnings over Indian energy imports," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

The announcement is being seen as a pressure tactic to get New Delhi to agree to demands made by the US, which has, in recent days, got favourable trade deals with major partners like Japan, the UK and the European Union.

The penalty was announced as India has made large purchases of oil and military equipment from Russia. India is the first country to face a penalty for Russian imports.

From the Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Sun Pharma, Reliance Industries, Adani Ports, NTPC and Asian Paints were among the biggest laggards.

However, FMCG major Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) jumped 3.48 per cent after the firm reported a 5.97 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit to Rs 2,768 crore for the June quarter of FY26, helped by gains from a re-estimation of taxes paid in the previous year.

Eternal, ITC, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Power Grid were also among the gainers.

"Markets witnessed volatile swings on the monthly expiry day and ended marginally lower amid mixed cues. The surprise tariff announcement by the US President on India initially triggered a knee-jerk reaction; however, a gradual recovery in heavyweight stocks across sectors helped the index briefly turn positive. Selling pressure resurfaced in the final hours, once again putting bulls on the back foot. As a result, the Nifty closed at 24,768.35, down 0.35 per cent," Ajit Mishra - SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said.

The BSE smallcap gauge dropped 0.85 per cent and the midcap index dipped 0.70 per cent.

Among BSE sectoral indices, telecommunication tanked 1.80 per cent, oil & gas (1.47 per cent), energy (1.40 per cent), metal (1.18 per cent), commodities (1.03 per cent), and consumer durables (0.78 per cent).

FMCG and services were the gainers.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled lower, while Japan's Nikkei 225 index ended in positive territory.

European markets were trading on a mixed note in mid-session trade. The US markets ended mostly lower on Wednesday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.74 per cent to USD 72.70 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 850.04 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

In the previous session, the Sensex climbed 143.91 points or 0.18 per cent to settle at 81,481.86. The Nifty rose 33.95 points or 0.14 per cent to 24,855.05.