Indian equity markets opened lower on Thursday, with the Sensex falling over 550 points and the Nifty 50 dipping below 25,200 because investors maintained their cautious approach toward the upcoming Union Budget. The major losers in early trade included Maruti Suzuki SBI Life Asian Paints Interglobe Aviation and M&M while L&T Hindalco Tata Steel NTPC and ONGC achieved market gains. Midcap and smallcap indices remained largely flat. Sectoral movement showed declines in IT, media, pharma, FMCG, auto, and consumer durables by 0.5–1%, whereas metal, oil & gas, and PSU banks rose by 0.3–1.8%.

Key Stock Movements

• PI Industries: Down 3.5% at Rs 3,105; trading 28% below 52-week high.
• Birlasoft: Q3 profit up 2.5% to Rs 119.9 crore; revenue falls 1.1%.
• Maharashtra Seamless: Profit rises 30%; revenue down 22.6%.
• M&M Financial: Nomura maintains buy, target Rs 440.
• Cochin Shipyard: Profit falls 18.3%; revenue up 17.7%.
• SBI Cards & Payment Services: Q3 profit jumps 45%.
• eClerx Services: Q3 profit surges 39.8%; revenue up 25.4%.
• LT Foods: Revenue up 23%; profit rises 9.8%.

Market Overview

• Sensex: 81,787.52, down 557.16 points (-0.68%)
• Nifty 50: 25,186.55, down 156.20 points (-0.62%)
• Advances/Declines: 1,340 shares advanced, 1,961 declined

Bank Nifty showed extreme price changes throughout the trading day after it began with a 200-point gap-up which was followed by a 450-point drop and subsequent recovery. Immediate resistance exists between the price range of 59,900 to 60,000 and the support level stands at 59,300 to 59.400.

Global & Economic Factors

• US Federal Reserve: Held rates steady at 3.5–3.75%; Fed Chair Powell signals data-driven policy approach.
• Dollar & Currency: Rupee hits record low, crosses 92 per USD; global currencies volatile amid Fed outlook.
• Oil Prices: Brent rises to $68.9/bbl; WTI at $63.79/bbl over Iran supply concerns.
• Industrial Growth: India’s industrial production jumps 7.8% in December, fastest in over 2 years.

Market Sentiment

Domestic investors continue to participate in the market while foreign institutional investors switched to buying after 15 consecutive selling sessions and domestic institutional investors maintained their high purchasing activity. The market shows caution before the Union Budget 2026 announcement because traders should study specific stocks that exhibit strong fundamental performance.

Stocks to Watch Today

The following stocks which are currently being monitored are Larsen & Toubro Lodha Developers NSDL LT Foods eClerx Services SBI Cards GE Vernova T&D India Balkrishna Industries Rail Vikas Nigam Wipro Gland Pharma Symphony and Ask Automotive.