Key benchmarks trade near the day's low; Europe opens lower as bond yields spike

The domestic equity benchmarks traded near the day's low in afternoon trade, weighed down by weak global cues. Renewed strength in crude oil prices and a sharp rise in global bond yields dampened investor sentiment. The Nifty traded below the 24,050 level. Healthcare, chemicals and cement stocks declined while only IT shares managed to trade in the green.

At 13:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 373.30 points or 0.48% to 76,862.16. The Nifty 50 index lost 113.35 points or 0.47% to 24,041.55.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index shed 0.41% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index slipped 0.63%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,653 shares rose and 2,482 shares fell. A total of 246 shares were unchanged.

Gainers & Losers:

Eternal (up 1.98%), HCL Tech (up 1.56%), JSW Steel (up 1.10%), Wipro (up 0.79%) and Bajaj Auto (up 0.72%) were the top gainers.

Coal India (down 1.90%), Power Grid Corp (down 1.87%), Bajaj Finance (down 1.51%), ICICI Bank (down 1.37%) and Axis Bank (down 1.29%) were the top losers.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Refex Industries fell 1.08%. The company has received a domestic work order worth approximately Rs 40.42 crore from an entity based in Maharashtra. The order involves a slab-wise rate contract for transportation of ash and is to be executed over a period of 12 months.

Ceigall India added 1%. The company, jointly with Rajinder Infrastructure, announced the receipt of letter of acceptance (LoA) from the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) for road construction project. The contract involves construction of a 37.57-km road on the Bile?Migging section of NH-913 in Arunachal Pradesh, under the EPC mode. The projects has an aggregate bid cost of Rs 274.08 crore.

CG Power and Industrial Solutions slipped 2.74%. In a regulatory filing made post market hours yesterday, the company said that there has been a suspected cyber event on the firm's IT systems. However, the event has not impacted the core systems and operations of the company, CG Power stated.

Global Market:

European markets edge lower while their Asian counterparts traded in the red on Wednesday after a sharp selloff in US technology and semiconductor stocks, while elevated Treasury yields and rising oil prices added to pressure on risk assets.

Investors scaled back exposure to richly valued growth stocks as higher borrowing costs, inflation concerns and geopolitical tensions clouded the outlook.

South Korea's KOSPI fell more than 5%, with semiconductor heavyweights SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics tumbling sharply. The sharp decline triggered a temporary halt on program selling, known as a sidecar, designed to provide a brief pause when markets experience sharp moves.

Rising bond yields added to the pressure. The US 30-year Treasury yield climbed to around 5.3%, its highest level since 2007, while the 10-year yield approached 4.72%. Higher long-term yields increase the discount rate applied to future corporate earnings, putting pressure on richly valued growth and technology stocks.

The semiconductor selloff also reflected growing caution over valuations across the AI trade and the scale of investment in AI infrastructure. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 5% on Tuesday, with Nvidia, Micron Technology and other chip-related stocks among the major decliners.

Higher oil prices added to inflation concerns. Brent crude was trading around $91-$92 a barrel on Wednesday as uncertainty over crude exports through the Strait of Hormuz persisted amid escalating tensions between the US and Iran.

Investors will also focus on minutes from the US Federal Reserve's July meeting, due on Wednesday, for clues on policymakers' thinking. The release comes as Fed Chair Kevin Warsh has adopted a more limited communication approach.

US stocks ended lower on Tuesday, led by losses in semiconductor and technology shares as rising Treasury yields and Middle East tensions weighed on sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 116.38 points, or 0.22%, to 53,343.40, while the S&P 500 dropped 53.30 points, or 0.69%, to 7,691.76. The Nasdaq Composite fell 355.20 points, or 1.33%, to 26,289.71.

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