Bond market volatility drags stocks; Nifty falls 0.36 pc, Sensex down 0.47 pc at opening

MUMBAI: The domestic stock markets continued their weak trend on Wednesday, with benchmark indices opening in the red amid subdued global cues and rising risk aversion. The Nifty 50 index opened at 25,141, down by 91.50 points, or 0.36 per cent, while the BSE Sensex opened at 81,794.65, registering a decline of 385.82 points, or 0.47 per cent.

Market experts said domestic equities are tracking global markets, which remain under pressure due to geopolitical concerns, rising bond yields, and uncertainty surrounding US trade policies. Ajay Bagga, banking and market expert, said that Indian markets are looking weak and are likely to move in line with global trends.

He said, “Indian markets are lookig weak and will trend with global markets. We expect global markets to attempt a recovery and don’t think Trump will follow through on the worst-case scenarios on Greenland. However, markets are worried and factoring in a risk off scenario with volatility rising as well. Indian markets lack a strong catalyst, though the USD 125 bn India-EU FTA will be a sentiment booster. US markets fell sharply on Tuesday and Asian markets are soft this morning. US yields were up as foreign investors are spooked by Trump’s weaponisation of tariffs on long term allies in Europe”.

Global bond market developments also added to investor caution. On Tuesday, the JGB Liquidity Index reached a record high, reflecting growing stress in the Japanese government bond market. Long-term Japanese bond yields surged, with 30- and 40-year bond rates touching new highs after rising by more than 25 basis points.

The weakness was visible across the broader market as well. The Nifty 100 index was down by 0.36 per cent, the Nifty Midcap 100 declined by 0.32 per cent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 was lower by 0.31 per cent.

On the sectoral front, most indices on the NSE were trading in the red. Nifty Auto slipped 0.63 per cent, Nifty FMCG fell 0.29 per cent, Nifty IT declined 0.26 per cent and Nifty PSU Bank was down by 0.37 per cent. In contrast, Nifty Pharma gained 0.14 per cent, while Nifty Media was also up by 0.14 per cent.

Several companies are scheduled to report their third-quarter financial performance later in the day, including Eternal, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, Bank of India, Waaree Energies, Oracle Financial Services Software, Jindal Stainless, Tata Communications, Supreme Industries, Dalmia Bharat, KEI Industries, and PNB Housing Finance.

In other Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was down by 0.44 per cent, Singapore’s Straits Times declined 0.32 per cent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slipped 0.08 per cent, further weighing on sentiment. (ANI)