SHARES SLIDE AHEAD OF RBI RATE CALL; NIFTY HOLDS 23,600

The domestic equity benchmarks declined for the second consecutive day on Thursday as investors awaited the Reserve Bank of India`s (RBI) interest rate decision amid ongoing global trade tensions. The Nifty index closed below the 23,650 mark, with volatility fueled by the expiry of Nifty options contracts. While realty, consumer durables, and FMCG sectors faced losses, pharma and IT stocks bucked the trend and registered gains. Globally, fears of an escalating trade war subsided, and US Treasury yields softened. The upcoming RBI policy outcome on Friday remains a key focus for investors, who are weighing the potential for a rate cut against the backdrop of global economic uncertainties.

The S&P BSE Sensex slipped 213.12 points or 0.27% to 78,058.16. The Nifty 50 index lost 92.25 points or 0.39% to 23,603.35.

Trent (down 8.28%), Titan Company (down 2.28%) and Bharti Airtel (down 2.47%) were major drags.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.87% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index unchanged.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,908 shares rose and 2,030 shares fell. A total of 125 shares were unchanged.

The NSE`s India VIX, a gauge of the market`s expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 0.65% to 14.18.

RBI will announce its interest rate decision on Friday, 7 February. The central bank maintained its key repo rate at 6.5% for the 11th consecutive meeting in December.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper grew 1.56% to 6.768 as compared with the previous close of 6.772.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 87.5775 compared with its close of 87.4350 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 4 April 2025 settlement shed 0.04% to Rs 84,533.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.34% to 107.99.

The United States 10-year bond yield rose 0.38% to 4.437.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for April 2025 settlement declined 55 cents or 0.74% to $75.16 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Thursday, as investors are awaiting more earnings reports and the latest monetary policy decision from the Bank of England.

In Asia, the yen strengthened against the dollar for a fourth consecutive day, fueled by remarks from Bank of Japan official Naoki Tamura, who suggested Japanese interest rates could reach 1% in the latter half of fiscal year 2025.

Market attention now turns to Friday`s US jobs report and its potential impact on Federal Reserve policy.

US indices advanced on Wednesday, supported by lower Treasury yields after purchasing managers index data indicated a slowdown in the US economy, particularly within the manufacturing sector.

The ISM Services PMI fell to 52.8 in January from 54.0 in December, missing expectations for a reading of 54.0. This data fueled speculation that a moderated US economy might encourage the Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates, even with inflationary pressures stemming from trade tariffs. Separately, better-than-expected ADP nonfarm employment data unsettled markets due to its potential to foreshadow a robust nonfarm payrolls figure for January. Private payrolls increased by 183,000 during the month, according to data from payrolls processor ADP, above the expected 148,000 growth.

Apple Inc. saw a slight dip after reports surfaced of Chinese scrutiny of its App Store. Chipmakers, notably Nvidia, provided significant uplift to Wall Street, particularly following indications from Alphabet and its competitors of substantial increases in spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure in 2025. However, Alphabet shares fell over 7% due to weaker-than-anticipated cloud revenue, a segment closely linked to AI.

The NASDAQ Composite underperformed other major indices, closing with a 0.2% gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7%, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.4%.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Bharti Airtel fell 2.47% The telecom major posted consolidated quarterly revenues of Rs 45,129 crore � up 19.1% YoY, up 8.8% QoQ, driven by strong underlying momentum in India, sustained constant currency growth in Africa and Indus Tower consolidation effective 19 November 2024. Consolidated net income (before exceptional items) stood at Rs 5,514 crore, up by 121.3%YoY. This quarter saw exceptional items primarily due to consolidation of Indus Towers.

Trent dropped 8.28%. The company reported 33.97% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 496.54 crore on a 34.33% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 4,656.56 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Q3 FY24.

State Bank of India fell 1.79%. The bank�s standalone net profit grew 84.32% to Rs 16,891.44 crore on an 8.69% rise in total income to Rs 1,28,467.39 in Q3 FY25 over Q3 FY24. Net interest income rose 10.02% to Rs 1,17,427 crore in Q3 FY25 compared with Rs 1,06,734 crore in Q3 FY24. Net interest margin (domestic) reduced by 19 bps to 3.15% in Q3 FY25 as against 3.34% in Q3 FY24.

BEML slipped 3.04% after the company�s consolidated net profit dropped 49.4% to Rs 24.41 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 48.20 crore posted in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations fell 16.4% YoY to Rs 875.77 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2024.

Meanwhile, the company�s board declared a second interim dividend of Rs 3 per share for FY25. The company has fixed 14 February 2025 as the record date for the purpose of payment of the interim dividend. The interim dividend will be paid on or after 25 February 2025.

Cummins India added 1.39% after the company�s standalone net profit jumped 12.98% to Rs 514 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 454.92 crore posted in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations was at Rs 3,041.42 crore in Q3 FY25, marking a growth of 21.56% as against Rs 2,501.81 crore reported in the same quarter last year.

Meanwhile, the company�s board has declared an interim dividend of Rs 18 per equity share for the financial year 2024-2025. The record date fixed for the payment of the interim dividend is 14 February 2025. The date fixed for payment of dividends is on or before March 3, 2025.

Aarti Pharmalabs jumped 6.63% after the company�s consolidated net profit jumped 40.2% to Rs 73.99 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 52.76 crore in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations grew 19.9% to Rs 537.78 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2024.

KPI Green Energy hit an upper circuit of 5% after the company�s consolidated net profit surged 67% to Rs 84.50 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 50.61 crore recorded in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 38.8% year on year (YoY) to Rs 458.36 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2024.

Swiggy slumped 6.98% after the company reported consolidated net loss of Rs 799.08 crore in Q3 FY25 compared with net loss of Rs 574.38 crore in Q3 FY24. However, revenue from operations jumped 30.98% to Rs 3993.06 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Rs 3,048.69 crore in Q3 FY24. Swiggy�s gross order value (GOV) grew 38% YoY to Rs 12,165 crore, while the consolidated adjusted EBITDA loss reduced by around 2% YoY to Rs 490 crore. The platform�s average monthly transacting users (MTU) increased 25.3% YoY to reach 17.8 million.

Sagility India hit an upper circuit of 5% after the company�s consolidated net profit surged 207.2% to Rs 216.91 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Rs 70.60 crore in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 15.3% YoY to Rs 1,453.07 crore in Q3 FY25.

Azad Engineering gained 3.12% after the company signed a pact with Rolls-Royce PLC, London, United Kingdom, to produce civil aircraft engine components in India.

Reliance Power rallied 6.27% after the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 41.95 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with net loss of Rs 1,136.75 crore in Q3 FY24. Net sales fell 4.7% YoY to Rs 1852.84 crore in Q3 FY25. During the quarter, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation & amortisation (EBITDA) stood at Rs 492 crore.

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