Equity benchmarks opened with modest declines on June 18 as markets reacted to the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady. The Nifty 50 index opened at 24,073, down 0.05%, while the S&P BSE Sensex opened at 77,131, declining 0.03%. This represents a shift from the previous session's gains, with the Sensex having added 372.78 points or 0.50% to 76,647.26 and the Nifty 50 jumping 92.75 points or 0.39% to 23,945.80 in the earlier trading session. The opening decline reflects market uncertainty following the Fed's monetary policy decision and ongoing geopolitical developments.
The Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady has created a mixed market response, with investors reassessing the implications for global monetary policy. The Fed's decision to maintain current rates has provided some relief to markets that had been anticipating potential rate hikes, though the steady stance has also raised questions about future policy direction. The US-Iran ceasefire agreement announced by President Trump continues to provide additional support to investor sentiment, with markets moving closer to ending the war between the U.S. and Iran. These developments have offset some of the positive momentum from earlier sessions, contributing to the current opening weakness. The Fed's June 16–17 FOMC meeting — the first chaired by new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh — concludes today, with markets widely pricing in an unchanged rate at 3.50%–3.75% given elevated inflation running at 4.2% year-over-year.
The Nifty IT Index rallied 1.13% to 28,384.10, marking the second consecutive trading session of buying demand in the technology sector. Key IT stocks led the rally with HCL Technologies surging 2.76%, Persistent Systems up 2.69%, Coforge gaining 2.38%, Tata Consultancy Services rising 1.27%, Tech Mahindra climbing 1.26%, and Infosys advancing 0.87%. Other notable performers included Wipro (up 0.67%), Mphasis (up 0.13%), and LTM (up 1%). The sector's recovery comes after facing selling pressure earlier due to concerns over a higher-for-longer interest rate environment in the US, with investors now showing renewed confidence in technology stocks.
Among the Nifty 50 constituents, Max Healthcare, Trent, Bharat Electronics, Eicher Motors and HDFC Bank were among the top gainers in the previous session. However, Bandhan Bank declined 1.21% after the bank announced that its board has approved the sale of identified non-performing assets with principal outstanding amounting to ₹303.74 crore to asset reconstruction companies. In the midcap segment, Nykaa, Radico Khaitan, Tata Investment Corporation, BHEL and ICICI Asset Management Company surged 2-8 per cent, while LTF, Swiggy, One97 Communications (Paytm), Info Edge and MCX declined 1-3 per cent. Among smallcap counters, Star Health, Five-Star Business Finance, CDSL and Redington gained 6-7 per cent, whereas IFCI and IDBI Bank declined 5-7 per cent.
Defence counters continued their upward momentum after India reported its highest-ever defence production and exports in FY26. Reflecting the optimism, the Nifty India Defence index climbed to a fresh record high of 9,580.80 during the session, according to The Hindu BusinessLine. Banking stocks received support after the Reserve Bank of India temporarily removed the interest rate ceiling on fresh FCNR(B) deposits with tenors of three to five years and NRE deposits with maturities of three years and above until September 30, 2026. According to SBI Securities, the move will allow banks to offer higher rates to attract foreign currency deposits, improve systemic liquidity, support deposit growth and strengthen liability profiles.
