Market opening: NIFTY50, SENSEX open flat down ahead of Union Budget; Nifty Metal tanks 4%, Hindalco, Tata Steel top loser

The Indian stock market opened flat down on Sunday, February 1, amid a drop in metal stocks while the investors focus on the Union Budget 2026-27 speech.  

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget 2026–27 on Sunday amid intensifying global trade tensions, geopolitical uncertainty and growing pressure to sustain India’s growth momentum while staying on a path of fiscal consolidation. The Economic Survey has projected India’s economy to grow between 6.8% and 7.2% in the 2026–27 financial year.

The broader market was trading lower in early deals, with the Nifty Midcap 100 falling 0.7% and the Nifty Smallcap 100 declining 1.25%.

Among sectors, Nifty Metal slipped the most, tumbling 4.32%, followed by Nifty PSU Bank (-1.46%), Nifty IT (-0.75%), Nifty Realty (-0.71%), and Nifty Media (-0.57%). On the other hand, Nifty Pharma (0.36%) and Nifty Private Bank (0.24%) were the only sectoral gainers.

According to exchange data, on Friday, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth ₹2,251.37 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold equities worth ₹601.03 crore on a net basis.

The S&P 500 index fell 0.43%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.36%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.94%.

Stock markets in India are usually shut for trading on Saturdays and Sundays, along with MCX and NCDEX. All exchanges operate between Monday and Friday every week, except for special circumstances like the Union Budget this year.

As many as 2,573 stocks traded on the NSE during the early session, among which 1,050 advanced, 1,425 declined, and 98 shares remained unchanged.

This indicates that the market's breadth is favourable towards declines.

Meanwhile, 14 stocks hit their one-year highs in the early trade, while 38 stocks touched their 52-week lows.

Further, 44 stocks hit their upper circuits, while 58 hit their lower circuits.

India VIX, the volatility gauge, was trading at 14.16 levels, rising 3.88%.

As many as 35 stocks declined, while 14 advanced and one remained unchanged in the opening session on the NIFTY50 index.

Hindalco Industries was the biggest laggard, declining 6.92%, followed by Tata Steel (-2.21%), Infosys (-1.66%), Adani Enterprises and Coal India, each falling 1.46%.

On the other hand, Sun Pharma (3.6%), Bajaj Auto (2.42%), Bharat Electronics (1.59%), Power Grid (1.17%) and Axis Bank (0.93%) were the top gainers on the 50-share index.