Indices advance ahead of Fed verdict; L&T spurts 4.8%
The headline equity benchmarks closed with modest gains today, aided by strong Q1 earnings from Larsen & Toubro (L&T). However, overall sentiment stayed cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy outcome due later tonight. Investors also kept a close watch on progress in the India-U.S. trade discussions. The Nifty ended above the 24,850 level, supported by buying in IT, FMCG, and consumer durables stocks.
The S&P BSE Sensex advanced 143.91 points or 0.18% to 81,481.86. The Nifty 50 index added 33.95 points or 0.14% to 24,855.05.
Larsen & Toubro (up 4.87%), Bharti Airtel (up 0.87%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.16%) boosted the Nifty higher today.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.17% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.17%.
The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,030 shares rose and 1,968 shares fell. A total of 160 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, slipped 2.77% to 11.21.
Economy:
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has upgraded India's economic growth estimate to 6.4% in both 2025-26 and 2026-27 as compared to what it had predicted in April. The growth upgrade, of 0.2 percentage points and 0.1 percentage points, respectively, is in line with the upgrades for global growth. The upward revision is primarily due to the suspension of higher tariffs, strong consumption growth, and a steady push for public investment. Inflation projections are also revised down to 3.7% in 2025 and 4% in 2026, thanks to easing food prices.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.02% to 6.368 from the previous close of 6.369.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 87.4350 compared with its close of 86.9100 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 5 August 2025 settlement rose 0.43% to Rs 98,680.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.03% to 98.89.
The United States 10-year bond yield declined 0.05% to 4.333.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for September 2025 settlement lost 56 cents or 0.77% to $71.95 a barrel.
Global Markets:
Most European indices rose on Wednesday as investors assessed a fresh wave of corporate earnings while awaiting key regional growth data and the outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve?s policy meeting.
Most Asian shares ended lower, led by declines in Japan and Hong Kong, as investors turned cautious ahead of the approaching U.S. tariff deadline and braced for key central bank decisions from the Bank of Japan and the Federal Reserve.
As U.S. President Donald Trump's deadline to strike a deal and avoid the ?Liberation Day? tariffs approaches, trade negotiations with some countries appear likely to continue until the last possible moment before the August 1 cutoff date.
The U.S. Commerce Secretary was quoted by the media saying that President Donald Trump?s upcoming Friday deadline to impose major tariffs on a slew of trading partners will not be delayed further. However, the trade negotiations with China are progressing on a separate timeline, the report added.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to leave interest rates unchanged at its policy meeting later on Wednesday, though it could see a rare dissent by some central bank officials in favour of lower borrowing costs.
Crude prices rose sharply earlier this week as the U.S. threatened to sanction major buyers of Russian oil, to pressure Moscow into ending its conflict with Ukraine. Signs of progress in U.S. trade relations, after a deal was struck with the European Union, also aided oil markets.
However, oil's rally saw some profit booking emerge steam after industry data revealed an unexpected rise in U.S. crude inventories.
Data from the American Petroleum Institute, released on Tuesday evening, showed U.S. oil inventories grew about 1.5 million barrels (mb) in the week to July 25. This build contrasted the widely reported market expectations for a 2.5 mb draw, and also marked a reversal from a small draw in the prior week.
Stocks on Wall Street closed lower on Tuesday, as investors turn their attention to the Federal Reserve?s interest rate decision.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.30% to close at 6,370.86, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.38% to 21,098.29. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 204.57 points, or 0.46%, to finish the session at 44,632.99.
New Listing:
Shares of GNG Electronics settled at Rs 333.50 on the BSE, representing a premium of 40.72% compared with the issue price of Rs 237.
The scrip was listed at Rs 350, exhibiting a premium of 47.67% to the issue price. The stock has hit a high of 364 and a low of 325.35. On the BSE, 32 lakh shares of the company were traded in the counter.
Shares of Indiqube Spaces settled at Rs 217.90 on the BSE, representing a discount of 8.06% compared with the issue price of Rs 237.
The scrip was listed at Rs 218.70, exhibiting a discount of 7.72% to the issue price. The stock has hit a high of 222.75 and a low of 201.55. On the BSE, over 9.55 lakh shares of the company were traded in the counter.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Larsen & Toubro (L&T) jumped 4.87% after the company reported 30% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 3,617.19 crore on a 16% rise in revenue to Rs 63,678.92 crore in Q1 FY26 as compared with Q1 FY25. The consolidated order book of the group as on 30 June 2025 was at Rs 612,761 crore, a growth of 6% over March 2025. The share of international orders is 46%.
Tata Motors slipped 3.47%. The following media reports that the company is in advanced talks to acquire the truck business of Italy-based Iveco Group from the Agnelli family in a deal valued at $4.5 billion. Investors expressed concerns about the financial strain the acquisition could place on Tata Motors? balance sheet.
Bank of India advanced 1.92% after the company?s standalone net profit climbed 32.3% to Rs 2,252.12 crore on 12.5% increase in total income to Rs 20,518.29 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Gallantt Ispat soared 10.88% after the company?s consolidated net profit jumped 42.61% to Rs 173.79 crore in Q1 FY26 as against Rs 121.86 crore in Q1 FY25. However, revenue from operations fell 2.75% year on year to Rs 1,127.77 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
Blue Dart Express dropped 4.79% after the company reported 8.59% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 48.83 crore in Q1 FY26 as against Rs 53.42 crore posted in Q1 FY25. However, revenue from operations rose 7.38% YoY to Rs 1,441.92 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2025.
NTPC rose 1.26% after the company reported a 9.80% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 6,010.60 crore on a 3.2% drop in net sales to Rs 47,065.36 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Allied Blenders and Distillers rose 1.32% after the company?s consolidated net profit stood at Rs 56 crore in Q1 FY26, marking a 398.6% increase compared to Rs 11 crore in Q1 FY25. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) increased by 21.80% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 922.86 crore in Q1 FY26.
GE Vernova T&D India hit an upper circuit of 5% after the company?s standalone net profit surged 116.44% to Rs 291.20 on 38.8% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 1,330.13 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
Firstsource Solutions added 1.6%. The company?s consolidated net profit rose 25.2% to Rs 169.33 crore on a 24.5% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 2,220.93 crore in Q1 FY26 over Q1 FY25.
IPO Update:
National Securities Depository (NSDL)'s IPO received bids for 6,14,15,712 shares as against 3,51,27,002 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:45 IST on Wednesday (30 July 2025). The issue was subscribed 1.75 times.
Aditya Infotech's IPO received bids for 7,57,48,838 shares as against 1,12,23,759 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:45 IST on Wednesday (30 July 2025). The issue was subscribed 6.75 times.
Laxmi India Finance's IPO received bids for 98,81,750 shares as against 1,13,12,816 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:45 IST on Wednesday (30 July 2025). The issue was subscribed 0.87 times.
M&B Engineering's IPO received bids for 64,04,558 shares as against 97,98,309 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:45 IST on Wednesday (30 July 2025). The issue was subscribed 0.65 times.
Sri Lotus Developers and Realty's IPO received bids for 14,10,41,400 shares as against 3,96,58,730 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:45 IST on Wednesday (30 July 2025). The issue was subscribed 3.56 times.
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