Markets end lower after rangebound session, Massive selling in tech and banks; Europe plunges 3% on tariff vows – Highlights

Dow futures slumped 650 points after China increases tariffs on US goods to 84%

Gold prices firmed on Wednesday as traders sought the safe-haven asset after U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs came into effect, while a weaker dollar and the rising prospect of U.S. rate cuts lent support.

Spot gold rose 2.1% at $3,044.94 an ounce, as of 1009 GMT. U.S. gold futures gained 2.4% to $3,062.40.

The U.S. dollar index fell 0.7%, making greenback-priced gold cheaper for overseas buyers.

Trump’s tariffs, which included a 104% duty on Chinese goods, came into effect at 0401 GMT, intensifying concerns about a global trade war and recession.

European shares fell and US stock futures pointed to more pain ahead on Wednesday — following a grim session for most of Asia. Chinese stocks bucked the trend, however, as state support propped up the ailing market.

European Union countries are expected to approve the bloc’s first countermeasures against Trump’s tariffs Wednesday. It joins China and Canada in retaliating.

The Sensex closed the session 379.93 points, or 0.51%, lower at 73,847.15 while the Nifty finished the session 136 points, or 0.61%, lower at 22,399.15.

At this hour, the major gainers in the Sensex 30 pack include Nestle India, Hindustan Unilever, PowerGrid, Titan and UltraTech Cement. On the flip side, the laggards are SBI, Tech Mahindra, L&T, Tata Steel and Sun pharma among the top 5 gainers and losers.

The overall market mood on the NSE appeared cautious, with 2,854 stocks traded during the session so far. Out of these, 909 stocks advanced, while a much larger count of 1,866 stocks declined, and 79 remained unchanged. Interestingly, only 15 stocks managed to hit their 52-week highs, while 36 sank to new 52-week lows, highlighting the bearish undertone. Meanwhile, 66 stocks were locked in the upper circuit, but 48 stocks hit the lower circuit.

China’s central bank will not allow sharp yuan declines and has asked major state-owned banks to reduce US dollar purchases. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) sent the window guidance, which is its informal style for managing policy around markets, to state banks this week, asking them to withhold US dollar purchases for their proprietary accounts, Reuters cited three sources.

“We expect the rate cut cycle to be deeper after the stance change to accommodative. We now see another 50 bps cut in the remainder of 2025 v/s earlier expectation of 25 bps. Another factor is the comfort of inflation with RBI seeing a durable alignment of headline inflation with the 4%-target in FY26. Despite the downward revision in the FY26 GDP estimate to 6.5% from 6.7%, we continue to see downside risk from tariff tensions. In our assessment downward impact of growth from tariffs is 0.5%, which hasn’t been baked into the GDP estimate,” said Gaura Sen Gupta, Chief Economist at IDFC FIRST Bank.

Amid growing strain from the US – China trade standoff, China’s top leadership is preparing to meet and chart out fresh strategies to revive the economy, as per Reuters report. This comes at a time when new US tariffs on Chinese goods have sharply increased, further intensifying pressure on Beijing. As per Reuters report, this upcoming meeting marks the first major leadership huddle since President Trump announced a fresh wave of tariffs last week.

European stocks slipped at the open on Wednesday, losing ground after a brief rally in the previous session. The implementation of fresh US country-specific tariffs cast a shadow over investor sentiment, dragging all major sectors and regional bourses into negative territory. Banking, mining, and energy stocks bore the brunt of the decline.

Asia-Pacific markets stumbled as investor sentiment took a hit following the implementation of country-specific tariffs by the US under President Donald Trump. From Australia to Japan and South Korea, major indices across the region are in the red, weighed down by concerns over escalating trade tensions and their potential impact on global economic growth. Japan’s markets were particularly hard hit, while South Korea’s benchmark index slipped further into bear territory.

Benchmark indices are trading lower. The Sensex declined by 371.39 points to 73,855.69, while the Nifty slipped 112.25 points to 22,423.60, both marking a 0.5% loss.

Zomato may now be Eternal on paper, but the markets were not exactly celebrating the fresh identity. The stock slipped 2% today, just as the company’s new name made its official debut on the stock exchanges. While the rebranding was cleared by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs last month.

The US Treasury’s 10-year yield spiked above 4.5% while the 30-year bond yields hit 5%. The US bonds extended their losses as investors dumped the safest assets on a rout unleashed by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

“The 25 bps cut in the repo rate was along expected lines, given the recent evolution of growth inflation dynamics. Given the burgeoning global uncertainty, the reduction in the MPC’s FY2026 forecasts for both the CPI inflation and GDP growth by 20 bps each and the change in stance to accommodative, amidst the clarity that it signals the future rate and not liquidity trajectory, we now expect an additional 50 bps of rate cuts over the next 3 policy reviews,” said Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist and Head of Research & Outreach at ICRA.

The sectoral index Nifty Pharma fell as much as 2.6% to an intra-day low of 19,839.60 after US President Donald Trump announced to soon introduce “major” tariffs on pharmaceutical imports. All the constituents of the index were trading in the red. Biocon, Granules India, Laurus Labs, Lupin, and IPCA Lab were the major losers of the index.

The Nifty Metal index is down 2% in today’s session, with all constituent stocks trading in negative territory. Leading the slump is Lloyds Metals and Energy, which has tumbled nearly 5%, followed by Welspun Corp, down 4%. Other major laggards include Hindustan Zinc, National Aluminium, and Jindal Steel, all witnessing notable declines as selling pressure mounts across the sector.

The Reserve Bank of India has projected real GDP growth for FY26 at 6.5%, with risks said to be “evenly balanced”. The quarterly projections are as follows: Q1 at 6.5%, Q2 at 6.7%, Q3 at 6.6%, and Q4 at 6.3%.

Crude oil and gasoline prices settled moderately lower on Tuesday after the Trump administration applied 104% tariffs on products imported from China. “Crude prices plummeted to a 4-year low due to concern that the global trade war could escalate and derail economic growth and energy demand. Meanwhile, data from the API industry group showed U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.1 million barrels in the week ended April 4,” said Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities.

Commenting on the ongoing trade tensions, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said, “Dent on global growth due to trade friction will impede domestic growth also. Higher tariffs shall have a negative impact on net exports.”

In a unanimous decision, the RBI Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has cut the repo rate by 25 basis points, bringing it down to 6%, with the change taking immediate effect.

In the early trading hours, broader markets witnessed significant selling pressure, with both midcap and smallcap stocks taking a hit. The BSE MidCap index dropped by 543.13 points, or 1.36%, to 39,294.31. Meanwhile, the BSE SmallCap index fell by 614.75 points, or 1.37%, to 44,317.67.

In the early trading hours, broader markets witnessed significant selling pressure, with both midcap and smallcap stocks taking a hit. The BSE MidCap index dropped by 543.13 points, or 1.36%, to 39,294.31. Meanwhile, the BSE SmallCap index fell by 614.75 points, or 1.37%, to 44,317.67.

The Nifty IT index is down 2% in today’s trade, currently hovering around 32,485.60. Leading the decline are Wipro, down 4%, and Mphasis, which has dropped 3.8%. Other major losers include Coforge, Persistent Systems, and Tech Mahindra, each falling around 3%. Notably, all 10 constituents of the Nifty IT index are trading in the red.

US Futures see a sharp downward move. Dow and S&P 500 Futures slide over 1% each as Trump Tariff comes into effect across Asia. The Nasdaq Futures have slumped 2% now.

In early trading hours, major gainers in the Sensex-30 pack included PowerGrid, up 2%, followed by Nestle India and Hindustan Unilever, which rose 1% each. Other notable gainers were Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Asian Paints, ITC, and Bharti Airtel.

On the flip side, laggards included Tata Steel and Tech Mahindra, both down 3%, while Infosys, HCL Tech, and L&T slipped by around 2%.

“Our reasoning behind lining up 22,660 as the upper band yesterday, which Nifty eventually tested before pausing, was that it appeared too early to fill the Monday gap. It still can, and we will wait for a push beyond 22,660 for the same, but until then, a pullback and consolidation near 22,300 is most likely, followed by renewed attempts to swing higher again. Alternatively, slippage below 22,160 could escalate volatility expectations again, but we see low odds of the same,” said Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit Investments.

“Gold and silver witnessed sharp volatility, initially surging on short-covering and bargain buying at lower levels. However, the momentum faded after a drastic move by the U.S. administration, which imposed a massive 104% tariff on Chinese imports. In a broader shift, the U.S. President announced sweeping changes to global trade policies, scrapping decades of tradition with a 10% baseline import tariff and aggressive levies on countries with high trade surpluses,” said Rahul Kalantri, VP Commodities, Mehta Equities Ltd.

“Gold has support at $2978-2955 while resistance at $3040-3065. Silver has support at $29.55-29.30 while resistance is at $30.20-30.45,” he added.

The markets opened on a lower note owing to global uncertainty around Trump’s tariffs on China. The Nifty 50 opened the session 160 points or 0.71% lower at 22,375.55 while the BSE Sensex fell 496 points or 0.67% to 73,730.

The gold rate loses shine. The rate for 24-carat gold today fell 1.7% from a week ago to Rs 87,850 per 10 grams. However, the rate of gold is still up by 2.4% from the last one month. The 22 kt gold rate today is Rs 80,529 per 10 grams. The 18-carat gold price today is Rs 65,888.