Indian equity benchmark indices ended Wednesday's volatile trading session with losses, as IT sector strength was offset by banking weakness. The session saw significant intraday volatility with the rupee hitting a fresh record low, adding to market concerns. GIFT Nifty Futures had earlier indicated a lower opening at 23,414.50, tracking broader Asian markets where KOSPI tanked more than 2%, Nikkei dropped 1.5%, and Hang Seng fell nearly 1%. Oil prices slipped a little with Brent crude futures off 0.2%, but remained above $110 a barrel at $111.07 amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.
Several companies are expected to be in focus during Wednesday's trading session with significant quarterly results. Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) reported mixed Q4 results with revenue remaining flat at ₹1.18 lakh crore versus ₹1.19 lakh crore quarter-on-quarter, while EBITDA declined 13.8% to ₹10,061 crore and net profit dropped 57.7% to ₹3,191 crore due to a one-time loss of ₹4,349 crore. Mankind Pharma delivered strong performance with revenue growing 11.8% to ₹3,443 crore and net profit increasing 31.7% to ₹554 crore, while EBITDA margin expanded to 27.0% from 22.2%. Wipro announced the completion of its acquisition of Mindsprint and associated digital businesses of the Olam Group, strengthening its enterprise technology and digital transformation offerings.
The earnings results showed mixed performance across sectors, with IT sector strength helping offset banking weakness. Prince Pipes reported exceptional growth with revenue up 18.1% to ₹850 crore and net profit surging 131.8% to ₹56.1 crore, while Hatson Agro saw revenue increase 14.9% to ₹2,578 crore with net profit rising 18.3% to ₹51 crore. Godawari Power demonstrated strong operational efficiency with EBITDA margin improving to 27.3% from 21.7% and net profit growing 26.6% to ₹280 crore. However, Zee Entertainment faced challenges with revenue declining 7.3% to ₹2,025 crore and net loss widening to ₹102.4 crore from a profit of ₹188.4 crore in the previous year. Orkla India beat expectations with sharp rise in quarterly profit, making it one of the stronger consumer-facing names from the latest earnings cycle.
The rupee emerged as a key concern during Wednesday's session, slipping to 96.55 per dollar in early trade after touching a previous record low of 96.50 in the prior session. During intraday trade between 2:00 and 3:00 pm, the currency came under additional pressure, marking another fresh low of 96. This currency weakness added to market volatility alongside the mixed earnings results. Provisional data suggests FPIs turned net sellers of domestic stocks to the tune of ₹2,457.49 crore on Tuesday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned buyers of Indian equities to the tune of ₹3,804.68 crore on a net-net basis. India VIX surged to settle at 19.50, which remains a key concern for bulls, with a sustained decline below the 18-mark crucial for bullish momentum to regain strength.
