Indian markets ended virtually unchanged on Wednesday in a volatile session that saw early gains evaporate in the second half. The Nifty 50 closed at 24,078.50, up just 0.11%, after touching an intraday high that reflected gains of nearly 0.7% before a sharp afternoon selloff wiped out most of those gains. The Sensex mirrored this trajectory, with broader markets performing better as the Nifty Midcap 100 advanced 0.3% and the Smallcap 100 climbed 0.7%, driven by stock-specific buying. Market breadth remained healthy with 300 of the Nifty 500 stocks closing in the green. As per The Economic Times, the session saw Sensex rise over 130 points to close at 77,185, while Nifty gained over 26 points to end at 24,078, though both indices dropped from their intraday highs. The volatility measure India VIX dropped over 3% to 13.27, indicating reduced market uncertainty. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, the session proved that in a results-heavy week, earnings speak louder than geopolitics, with advances outpacing declines.
The session's gains were capped by broad-based selling in information technology stocks, with TCS leading losses on the Nifty 50, falling ₹50.60 or 1.76% to ₹2,150.00 against a previous close of ₹2,200.60. As reported by Business Standard, Infosys dropped 1.49% to ₹1,076.60, HCL Technologies fell 1.26% to ₹1,152.00, Wipro shed 1.16% to ₹175.08, and Tech Mahindra declined 1.13% to ₹1,467.50, making IT the worst-performing sector. However, L&T Technology Services (LTTS) jumped 6.63% after reporting a healthy 17.4% YoY increase in consolidated net income to ₹351.8 crore in Q1 FY27, while Fedbank Financial Services surged 4.10% following strong quarterly performance with standalone net profit rising 52.49% to ₹114.38 crore. On the earnings front, Tata Elxsi fell 4% despite 14.5% revenue growth year-on-year, as markets punished numbers that fell short of elevated expectations. Patanjali Foods extended its losing streak to three straight sessions, with edible oil price volatility squeezing margins and institutional investors trimming positions. According to The Economic Times, the IT sector underperformed following weak preliminary results and commentary from IBM, with softer US inflation data supporting sentiment while the Fed maintained focus on price stability without turning more hawkish.
Sectorally, cement gained 1.8%, PSU banks added 1%, and chemicals rose 0.9%, providing broad-based support across financials, aviation, and consumer sectors. Metals dropped 1.1%, IT shed 0.7%, and FMCG slipped 0.5%, with metal stocks weighed down by disappointing China GDP data showing the world's second-largest economy expanded 4.3% year-on-year in Q2 2026, below expectations, reflecting weak domestic demand and continued stress in the property sector. Financials drew support from softer-than-expected US Consumer Price Index data, which eased concerns over aggressive Federal Reserve tightening. PSU banks gained on strong business updates, while textile and industrial stocks advanced as the India-UK trade deal went live. According to The Economic Times, softer US inflation data supported sentiment, with the S&P 500 financial sector gaining 0.6% for a second straight day of strong results from major banks. UltraTech Cement and Eternal were the top Nifty gainers, while Hindalco and Power Grid each fell over 1.5% to lead the declines. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, the market held its ground with advances outpacing declines, with earnings doing the heavy lifting.
The Indian rupee weakened past 96.20 against the US dollar, its lowest since May 21, marking a third consecutive session of losses and depreciating roughly 2.4% from its June peak of 94.14. The currency has been pressured by rising crude prices and sustained importer dollar demand. Brent crude held above $85 per barrel as the US-Iran conflict escalated, with Iran threatening to block key seaways in the Strait of Hormuz, stoking global energy supply concerns. Domestic crude futures rose over 1.5% to hover near ₹7,700 per barrel. Gold edged lower, with MCX Gold falling about 0.6% to ₹1,41,350 and COMEX Gold slipping 0.55% to $4,030, testing the critical $4,000 support level despite a softer dollar. The Union Cabinet's approval of the second phase of the India Semiconductor Mission with a ₹1.27 lakh crore outlay kept Electronics Manufacturing Services and semiconductor stocks in focus.
Market breadth remained healthy with 1,847 stocks witnessing advances, 1,445 seeing declines while 111 remained unchanged out of 3,403 stocks that traded on NSE on July 15, as per The Economic Times. Kalyan Jewellers emerged as the most active stock in terms of turnover with ₹3,428 crore, followed by Groww at ₹3,265 crore and Patanjali Foods at ₹2,858 crore. In volume terms, Vodafone Idea led with 32.32 crore traded shares, followed by Groww at 15.36 crore and Ola Electric at 9.19 crore. Nuvoco Vistas Corp, Gabriel India, Aegis Logistics, Ather Energy, L&T Tech, Groww and Jubilant Pharmova witnessed strong buying interest, while Patanjali Foods, Tata Elxsi, Physicswallah, Adani Power, Adani Green, CarTrade Tech and Go Digit General Insurance faced selling pressure. Ather Energy, Gujarat Fluorochem, Bandhan Bank, Ipca Labs, Divis Labs, Torrent Pharma and J B Chemicals hit their 52-week highs, while Patanjali Foods, Tata Elxsi, Vedanta and KPIT Tech touched their 52-week lows.
