Stock Market Highlights: Sell-off on D-Street; Carnage across Small and midcaps, Sensex, Nifty tank nearly 2%

Minutes before the market closing, the top gainers from the Sensex 30 include HDFC Bank, up by 1.56%, Axis Bank, up by 0.72%, and Reliance, up by 0.12%. On the other hand, the top five laggards were Tech Mahindra, IndusInd Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, and Infosys.

Indian stock markets continued their sharp decline in the afternoon session, with both Sensex and Nifty slipping nearly 1.9%. The Sensex tumbled over 1,400 points to 73,201, while the Nifty dropped 426 points to 22,119, extending the sell-off seen earlier in the day.

The market weakness is driven by multiple factors, including worries about upcoming GDP data, uncertainty over Trump's trade policies, and a sell-off in IT stocks .

As of now, the 5 top loser in the Nifty 50 include IndusInd Bank (-6.42), Tech Mahindra (-5.67), Wipro (-5.67), Titan (-4.94), and M&M (-4.09).

With 2,837 stocks traded on the Nifty, only 266 stocks advanced, while 2,511 stocks declined, and 60 stocks remained unchanged.

The market weakness was further highlighted by 689 stocks hitting their 52-week low, compared to just 5 stocks reaching a 52-week high. In addition to this, 233 stocks were locked in the lower circuit, whereas only 24 stocks hit the upper circuit.

The BSE Auto index witnessed a sharp decline, dropping 1,402.88 points or 2.94%.

Among the major laggards, Maruti Suzuki led the fall with a 4.13%, followed by Motherson slipping 4.03%. TVS Motor and M&M also faced significant losses, declining 3.46% and 3.41%, respectively. Meanwhile, Ashok Leyland shed 3.29%.

All sectoral indices are trading lower, with IT, auto, and telecom down 2-3%. The BSE Smallcap index is down over 2%, shedding nearly 900 points, while the Midcap index has dropped 2.3%, losing over 900 points. The BSE Telecom index is down 2.8%, and the Auto index has slipped over 1,200 points or 2.66%.

Indian equity indices, Sensex and Nifty, opened lower today, trading in the red. The Sensex was down 0.55% at 74,202.69, while the NSE Nifty opened at 22,350.70, declining by 0.86%.

"Yesterday's Nifty movement was slow and uninspiring, much like a tortoise, with a narrow range resembling porcupine spines. This Friday, Gift Nifty indicates a similarly lacklustre start, raising questions about whether market volatility has eased. However, negative catalysts persist, including weakened investor sentiment following Trump's announcement of a 25% tariff on EU imports and Nvidia's mixed quarterly results," said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd.

"FIIs have sold over Rs 1,34,165 crore in 2025. On the bright side, WTI oil prices have dipped to $69.50 per barrel, and India VIX stands at 13.30. Technically, Nifty’s strength depends on surpassing the 24,074 mark, with downside risks at 22300 and 21281," he added.

Asian markets slipped on Friday after US President Donald Trump announced new tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, set to take effect next week. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.86%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 0.9%, and the broader Topix index declined 0.68% in early trade.