News

Nifty trades tad above 24,200 level; European shares decline

18-Aug-2026 | 13:22

The benchmark indices continued to trade with limited losses in afternoon trade, weighed down by a rise in crude oil prices following the expiry of the US-Iran ceasefire and growing uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The Nifty traded tad above the 24,200 mark. IT, FMCG & metal shares declined while auto, oil & gas and pharma stocks managed to trade in the green.

At 13:17 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 354.07 points or 0.46% to 77,374.09. The Nifty 50 index lost 84.75 points or 0.35% to 24,202.90.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index shed 0.22% while the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.13%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,864 shares rose and 2,302 shares fell. A total of 231 shares were unchanged.

Gainers & Losers:

Trent (up 1.03%), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 0.99%), Axis Bank (up 0.82%), Bajaj Finance (up 0.79%) and Grasim (up 0.66%) were the top gainers.

Asian Paints (down 2.24%), Infosys (down 2.12%), HCL Tech (down 1.99%), Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (down 1.79%) and Tech Mahindra (down 1.63%) were the top losers.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Goldiam International slipped 3.37%. The company said that it has secured export orders worth Rs 50 crore from US-based international clients.

Ceigall India fell 2.77%. The company, jointly with Sushee Infra Mining, has received four letters of acceptance from the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) for undertaking the EPC construction of 204 km of intermediate-lane roads on NH-913 in Arunachal Pradesh. The four projects have an aggregate bid cost of Rs 2,149.62 crore.

Premier Energies was up 0.07%. Crisil Ratings has upgraded its rating on the long-term bank facilities of the company to 'Crisil A+/Positive? from 'Crisil A/Positive?. The rating on the short-term facilities has been reaffirmed at ?Crisil A1?.

Onesource Specialty Pharma shed 0.51%. India Ratings and Research has upgraded the company's long-term rating to 'IND A' from 'IND A-' with a 'positive' outlook. The rating on the short-term facilities has been reaffirmed at ?IND A1?.

Global Market:

European equities extended a selloff on Tuesday, driving continental benchmarks to two-week lows as a dramatic escalation in Middle East war posture sent shockwaves through global risk assets.

Most of their Asian counterparts also edged lower today as renewed uncertainty over the US-Iran ceasefire pushed oil prices above $91 a barrel and simultaneously stoked global inflation concerns.

US President Donald Trump ruled out extending the 60-day agreement with Iran and threatened military action against Oman, while negotiations between Washington and Tehran remained stalled. Higher oil prices also pushed longer-dated US Treasury yields higher.

China's economy lost momentum in July, with consumer spending, investment and industrial activity weakening. Retail sales grew 0.6% year-on-year, slowing from 1% growth in June.

Urban fixed-asset investment fell 6.7% in the first seven months of the year, compared with a 5.7% decline in the first half, while industrial output growth slowed to 4.5% from 5.3% in June. The urban unemployment rate rose to 5.2% from 5% in June.

US stocks ended lower overnight as renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran lifted oil prices and revived inflation concerns.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.51%, the S&P 500 declined 0.52% and the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.32%. Investors will now focus on the minutes of the Federal Reserve's July meeting, due Wednesday, for clues on the interest-rate outlook.

The Fed had kept its benchmark rate unchanged at 3.50%-3.75% at its 28-29 July meeting, although three policymakers dissented in favour of a rate hike.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News