SENSEX, NIFTY SLIP AS GLOBAL CUES SOUR AND HEAVYWEIGHT EARNINGS DISAPPOINT

Equity benchmarks closed lower on Monday as investor sentiment turned cautious amid renewed global trade tensions and disappointing earnings from index heavyweights. The Nifty slipping below the 25,600 mark, dragged by energy stocks. Traders were unsettled after US President Donald Trump threatened fresh tariffs on eight European countries over their opposition to his Greenland bid, raising fears of an escalation in global trade wars and triggering volatility across global markets. Sentiment was further dented by uncertainty over the next US Federal Reserve chair after Trump signalled Kevin Hassett may continue in his current role, tempering expectations of aggressive rate cuts in 2026.

Back home, persistent foreign institutional selling weighed on sentiment, with FIIs remaining net sellers for a ninth straight session. Market mood was further hit by weak December-quarter earnings. Wipro`s subdued outlook for the March quarter added to the caution. ICICI Bank also came under pressure after reporting higher-than-expected provisions for bad loans.

The S&P BSE Sensex tanked 324.17 points or 0.39% to 83,246.18. The Nifty 50 index declined 108.85 points or 0.42% to 25,585.50.

Wipro (down 7.95%), Reliance Industries (down 3.04%) and ICICI Bank (down 2.26%) were major Nifty drags today.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 0.43% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 1.28%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,226 shares rose and 3,075 shares fell. A total of 191 shares were unchanged.

The NSE`s India VIX, a gauge of the market`s expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 4% to 11.83.

Economy:

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday raised its economic growth forecast for India for the 2025-26 financial year, citing stronger-than-expected momentum in recent quarters. IMF has revised India`s GDP growth estimate for FY26 upward by 0.7% to 7.3%, reflecting a better-than-anticipated performance in the third quarter and sustained strength heading into the fourth. However, the IMF expects growth to ease to 6.4% in 2026 and 2027 as temporary and cyclical factors supporting the economy begin to wane.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper rose 0.07% to 6.683 compared with previous session close of 6.678.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.9200 compared with its close of 90.7875 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 February 2026 settlement rose 1.81% to Rs 145,102.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.21% to 99.18.

The United States 10-year bond yield rose 0.54% to 4.256.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for March 2026 settlement fell 77 cents or 1.20% to $63.36 a barrel.

Global Markets:

European indices traded lower Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened economic sanctions on a number of countries in the region if they oppose his plans to acquire Greenland.

The December Eurozone annual CPI figure is expected to be 2.0%, hitting the European Central Bank�s target for the first time since mid-2025, down from 2.1% in November.

Most Asian indices ended lower on Monday as investors assessed threats from the Trump administration toward Greenland over the weekend, as well as key economic data from China out Monday.

Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders exchanged tense rhetoric over the Arctic territory, with Trump threatening tariffs on eight European countries and demanding control of Greenland, which is part of Denmark.

European leaders responded by calling the threats "completely wrong" and "unacceptable."

In Asia, China released its fourth-quarter GDP numbers, along with December figures for retail sales, urban investment and industrial output.

China�s economic growth slowed to its weakest pace in nearly three years in the fourth quarter as domestic demand softened, though full-year growth matched Beijing�s target despite growing trade frictions with the U.S. and a prolonged real estate slump.

Gross domestic product grew 4.5% in the October-to-December period, data from the National Statistics Bureau showed Monday. That marked a slowdown from 4.8% in the third quarter and was the weakest reading since the first quarter of 2023, when growth also came in at 4.5%.

The full-year economic output came in at 5%, meeting the official target of around 5%.

On Friday in the U.S., the S&P 500 ended just below the flatline and posted a losing week, while the Nasdaq Composite also inched down 0.06%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.17%.

The three major indexes hit their session lows after Trump said in the White House on Friday that he�d rather have National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett stay in his current role and that he might not be chosen to become the next U.S. Fed chair.

Hassett has been seen as the more market-friendly option to replace current Fed chair than the new frontrunner nominee, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, and is expected to be more willing to keep rates low.

New Listing:

Shares of Bharat Coking Coal ended at Rs 40.66 on the BSE, a premium of 76.78% compared with the issue price of Rs 23.

The stock debuted at Rs 45.21, a premium of 96.57% to the issue price. The stock has hit a high of 45.21 and a low of 40.13. On the BSE, 11.97 crore shares of the company were traded in the counter.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Wipro tumbled 7.95% after the company reported a 3.92% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 3,119 crore despite a 3.78% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 23,555.8 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q2 FY26. Looking ahead, the company said that it expects revenue from IT Services business segment to be in the range of $2,635 million to $2,688 million. This translates to sequential guidance of 0% to 2.0% in constant currency terms.

Reliance Industries (RIL) slipped 3.04% after the company reported a 1.6% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 22,290 crore on a 10% increase in gross revenue to Rs 293,829 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

ICICI Bank slipped 2.26% after the bank reported a 4.02% fall in standalone net profit to Rs 11,318 crore in Q3 FY26 from Rs 11,792 crore in Q3 FY25. Net interest income (NII) increased by 7.7% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 21,932 crore in Q3 FY26. Net interest margin was 4.30% in Q3 FY26 as against 4.25% in Q3 FY25. Provisions (excluding provision for tax) were Rs 2,556 crore in Q3 FY26 compared to Rs 1,227 crore in Q3 FY25.

HDFC Bank shed 0.38%. The company reported an 11.46% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 18,563.75 crore on a 2.91% increase in total income to Rs 90,005 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) shed 0.94%. The company�s consolidated net profit surged 189.82% to Rs 403.42 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 134.70 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations rose 16.43% year-on-year to Rs 8,473.10 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2025.

Mahindra EPC Irrigation shed 0.92%. The company reported consolidated net profit rose 2.20% to Rs 6.49 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 6.35 crore recorded in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations rallied 14.75% to Rs 93.47 crore in Q3 FY26, against Rs 81.45 crore posted in the same quarter last year.

Hatsun Agro Product rose 2.92% after the company reported a steady set of numbers for the quarter ended 31 December 2025. On a consolidated basis, revenue from operations increased 17.6% YoY to Rs 2,363.72 crore, compared with Rs 2,009.75 crore in the year-ago quarter. Sequentially, revenue declined 2.6% QoQ from Rs 2,427.59 crore in the September quarter. Profit after tax (PAT) rose 48% YoY to Rs 60.58 crore, compared with Rs 40.94 crore in the same quarter last year. On a sequential basis, PAT declined 44.70% from Rs 109.54 crore in Q2 FY26.

Polycab India climbed 3.98% after the company reported a solid top-line performance for Q3 FY26. Revenue from operations surged 46% YoY and 18% QoQ to Rs 7,636.1 crore in Q3 FY26, up from Rs 5,226.1 crore in Q3 FY25 and Rs 6,477.2 crore in Q2 FY26. Net profit declined 9% QoQ but rose 36% YoY to Rs 630.2 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 693 crore in Q2 FY26 and Rs 464.3 crore in Q3 FY25.

Nureca jumped 4.90% after net profit stood at Rs 3.73 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with a loss of Rs 2.80 crore in Q3 FY25. On a sequential basis, PAT rose 2.8% from Rs 3.63 crore in Q2 FY26. Revenue from operations jumped 49.8% YoY to Rs 39.64 crore in Q3 FY26 from Rs 26.46 crore a year ago. Sequentially, revenue increased 5.0% from Rs 37.74 crore in Q2 FY26.

JK Cement declined 1.59% after the company reported an 8.56% tumble in consolidated net profit to Rs 173.61 crore as against Rs 189.87 crore posted in Q3 FY25. However, revenue from operations rose 18.18% to Rs 3,463.07 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 2,930.28 crore posted in Q3 FY25.

Netweb Technologies India rose 1.58% after the company�s standalone net profit soared 146.7% to Rs 73.31 crore on a 141% surge in revenue from operations to Rs 804.92 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals gained 0.75%. The company reported a 21.79% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 197.89 crore, supported by a 10.51% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 1,064.72 crore in Q3 FY26 compared to Q3 FY25.

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