Benchmarks trade near the day's low; European shares open on dour notes

The benchmark indices traded near the day's low in afternoon trade, weighed down by continued selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs). Investor sentiment remained cautious amid volatility in crude oil prices and ongoing uncertainty surrounding the US-Iran conflict. Market participants also tracked monthly auto sales data for further cues. The Nifty traded below the 22,500 level.

At 13:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 874.12 points or 1.21% to 71,606.17. The Nifty 50 index fell 287.50 points or 1.27% to 22,332.95.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index shed 1.47% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index dropped 1.88%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 981 shares rose and 3,258 shares fell. A total of 239 shares were unchanged.

The Indian stock market will remain closed on Friday, 2 October 2026, on account of Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti.

Economy:

The government has reduced the windfall gains tax on exports of diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) for the fortnight beginning 1 October 2026, while keeping the levy on petrol exports unchanged.

The special additional excise duty (SAED), along with road and infrastructure cess, on diesel exports has been cut to Rs 16 per litre from Rs 20 per litre, while the levy on ATF exports has been reduced to Rs 10.5 per litre from Rs 15 per litre.

The duty on petrol exports remains unchanged at Rs 0.5 per litre. The Finance Ministry said there is no change in the existing duty rates on petrol and diesel cleared for domestic consumption.

The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing PMI rose to 55.1 in September from 52.8 in August, marking the strongest improvement in the sector?s health in seven months. The September data indicated a recovery in growth momentum across India?s manufacturing sector, supported by faster increases in new orders and output, which also contributed to job creation and inventory accumulation.

Gainers & Losers:

HDFC Life (up 2.03%), HDFC Bank (up 0.98%), Infosys (up 0.82%), SBI Life (up 0.80%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.79%) were the top gainers.

Bajaj Auto (down 6.92%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 4.58%), Maruti Suzuki (down 4.37%), Eicher Motors (down 3.71%) and Shriram Finance (down 3.60%) were the top losers.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Surya Roshni fell 1.70%. The company said that the Steel Pipes & Strips sales volume stood at 2.67 lakh tonnes in Q2 FY27 as against 2.18 lakh tonnes in Q2 FY26, thereby registering a growth of 23% YoY.

Sterlite Technologies jumped 4.35%. The company said its wholly owned subsidiary had received a long-term supply agreement from an international hyperscale partner.

Global Market:

European equity bourses began October and the final quarter of the year on a dour note on Thursday, as persistent energy-driven inflation fears and a stalled Middle East peace process outweighed relief from softer U.S. macroeconomic data.

Meanwhile, Asian shares edged higher in trade today, with mainland China and Hong Kong markets closed for holidays.

US stocks ended mixed on Wednesday after data showed that inflation rose less than expected in August, easing expectations of an immediate Federal Reserve rate hike.

However, elevated Treasury yields limited gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 443.87 points, or 0.86%, to 50,906.05, while the S&P 500 fell 19.30 points, or 0.25%, to 7,651.54. The Nasdaq Composite rose 63.52 points, or 0.24%, to 26,861.06.

US inflation, as measured by the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, rose 0.3% month-on-month in August and 3.4% year-on-year. The annual increase was below economists? expectations of 3.7%, helping reduce expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike at the October meeting. Core PCE inflation rose 3% year-on-year.

Micron Technology reported record fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $54.23 billion and non-GAAP earnings of $33.42 per share. The company forecast adjusted EPS of $38.15 at the midpoint for the current quarter, above market expectations. Its shares initially gained in after-hours trading before paring the move.

Crude oil prices traded lower, with Brent crude futures down 0.24% at $97.79 a barrel. Oil prices remained a key focus for investors amid ongoing geopolitical tensions and concerns over energy supply.

Investors will next focus on the US nonfarm payrolls report for September, due on Friday, for further clues on the Federal Reserve?s interest-rate path.

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