Benchmarks trade in negative terrain; realty shares drop
Meanwhile, the Indian government has slashed additional excise duty on both petrol and diesel on the backdrop of the ongoing US-Iran war in West Asia. The additional excise duty on petrol has been lowered to Rs 3 per litre from Rs 13 per litre earlier. Meanwhile, the excise duty on diesel was cut to nil from Rs 10 per liter earlier. The move to cut petrol and diesel excise duty is aimed at providing relief to the oil marketing companies as oil prices continue to trade above $100 per barrel amid the war in the Middle East. Auto shares declined after advancing in the past two trading sessions.
At 14:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 1,428.59 points or 1.90% to 73,842.52. The Nifty 50 index fell 408.60 points or 1.77% to 22,891.80.
In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index slipped 1.77% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index declined 1.63%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 835 shares rose and 3,461 shares fell. A total of 148 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term rallied 8.04% to 26.62.
US-Iran Warfare
As the Middle East conflict continues without clarity, uncertainty remains a key concern for investors.
According to media reports, U.S. President Donald Trump has decided to extend the pause on potential strikes targeting Iran?s energy infrastructure into April, stating that the decision was taken at Tehran?s ?request.? However, subsequent media reports suggested that Iran had not formally sought any such pause.
Meanwhile, Iran is said to have rejected a 15-point proposal put forward by the United States and instead presented its own set of conditions. These reportedly include assurances that the U.S. and Israel would not resume military actions against Iran, along with recognition of Iran?s control over the Strait of Hormuz.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Realty index slumped 2.56% to 674.40. The index jumped 4.33% in the past two trading sessions.
Lodha Developers (down 4.09%), Prestige Estates Projects (down 4.01%), Anant Raj (down 3.89%), Godrej Properties (down 3.57%), Phoenix Mills (down 3.32%), Oberoi Realty (down 1.89%), SignatureGlobal India (down 1.81%), DLF (down 1.36%), Sobha (down 0.86%) delcined.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper advanced 0.96% to 6.940 compared with the previous session close of 6.874.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 94.7200 compared with its close of 93.6900 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement jumped 1.90% to Rs 142,150.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.08% to 99.98.
The United States 10-year bond yield rose 0.91% to 4.458.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2026 settlement added $1.99 or 1.84% to $110 a barrel.
Stock in Spotlight:
Aditya Birla Real Estate declined 3.08%. The company said that its wholly owned subsidiary, Birla Estates has announced its entry into the redevelopment segment with a residential project in Khar (West), Mumbai, with an estimated revenue potential of Rs 1,700 crore.
Coal India (CIL) rose 0.53%. The company said that it has plans to set up eight new coking coal washeries at an estimated capital outlay of Rs 3,300 crore.
Biocon fell 1.74%. The company has announced a series of top-level leadership changes, including the appointment of Shreehas Pradeep Tambe as its new chief executive officer and managing director, effective 1 April 2026. The company?s board accepted the resignation of Siddharth Mittal as CEO and managing director, effective close of business hours on 31 March 2026. The company has appointed Kedar Narayan Upadhye as chief financial officer with effect from 1st April 2026.
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