Indian equities remained under pressure on Thursday, with selling spreading across the broader market as investors continued to remain cautious amid weak global cues. The BSE Sensex declined 274.81 points, or 0.38%, to 72,205.48 at around 12:15 p.m. while NSE's Nifty 50 was down 0.38% at 22,535.60. The weakness was more visible across midcap and smallcap stocks, with Nifty Midcap 150 falling 0.9% to 21,671.5 level and Nifty Smallcap 250 declining 1.3% to 17,571.6 level by 12:26 p.m. The selling was even sharper across several smallcap names, with IRCON International declining 6% to ₹110.11, Sansera Engineering falling 6.02% to ₹4,264.4, and CMPDI tanking more than 5% to ₹198.55 until 12:29 p.m. Persistent foreign selling, elevated global borrowing costs, fluctuations in crude oil prices, a weaker rupee and broader geopolitical uncertainty are among the factors weighing on market sentiment.
Auto stocks like Bajaj Auto, Mahindra & Mahindra, Eicher Motors, Maruti Suzuki India, among several others, tumbled during the trading session on Thursday, October 1, dragging down the Nifty Auto index over 4% as investors reacted to the September 2026 sales data release. The top losers in the index included Bajaj Auto, Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Shriram Finance, and Eicher Motors. However, HDFC Life Insurance Company, HDFC Bank, SBI Life Insurance Company, Infosys, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the top gainers. FMCG shares are witnessing selling pressure due to concerns over weak consumption growth, rising input costs and margin pressures, as rising inflation has prompted investors to reassess earnings prospects and valuations of the FMCG sector. Power and allied companies such as Power Grid Corporation of India, Adani Energy Solutions, GE Vernova T&D India, Hitachi Energy India, and CG Power and Industrial Solutions gained following the Union Cabinet's approval of the ₹1.86 lakh crore PM-DHARA Scheme aimed at strengthening India's power transmission network.
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) rallied by as much as 17.3% to hit an intraday high of ₹26.94 per equity share as its board of directors approved the proposal for the sale and transfer of its property in Powai to the Income Tax Department. The company will sell and transfer its property with a land area of 20,895.60 square meters at Powai Plot-C, Technology Street, Powai, Mumbai – 400 076 to the Income Tax Department at a sale value of ₹891.53 crore through Government–to–Government (G2G) Transfer. Kotak Mahindra Bank rallied as much as 4.5% to touch the session's peak of ₹435.60 apiece after the RBI approved the appointment of Anup Kumar Saha as the Bank's Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer for a period of three years, effective January 1, 2027. Sterlite Technologies shares climbed as much as 5% to touch the session's peak of ₹955.35 per unit as the company received a Long-Term Supply Agreement worth $1.2 billion from a hyperscale partner for optical connectivity products valid up to December 2030. Molbio Diagnostics jumped as much as 19.5% to hit an intraday high of ₹1,564.30 per equity share after HDFC Mutual Fund bought 23 lakh shares amounting to a 2% stake for ₹302.45 crore, while A-One Steel made a strong debut at ₹455 per unit on NSE, reflecting a 12.35% premium over its IPO issue price of ₹405.
On Thursday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹10,148.41 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased equities worth ₹11,271.73 crore on a net basis, according to exchange data. As reported by Investing.com, the Indian rupee weakened past the 96 mark during the trading session, with the rupee weakening 0.20% to touch a high of 96.388 against the US dollar, in comparison to 96.187 at the previous currency market close. Siddhartha Khemka from Motilal Oswal Financial Services noted that the relentless selling from foreign institutional investors continues to weigh on Indian markets, amid rising US bond yields and crude prices, which could add to inflationary pressures. The subdued monthly vehicle sales data for September 2026, combined with the benchmark Brent crude oil prices trading around $98 per barrel, led to the fall in auto stocks, while uncertainty over the pace of rural demand recovery and weakness in the broader equity market further weighed on investor sentiment.
