NIFTY50 and SENSEX trade 1% lower; Axis Bank and Infosys among top laggards

Domestic equity markets remained under pressure, with SENSEX and NIFTY falling over 590 and 160 points respectively in late morning deals, weighed down by the performance of index heavyweights Infosys and Axis Bank following their Q3 results.

Infosys fell by over 5.50% despite reporting a 12% YoY increase in its consolidated net profit. Axis Bank also declined by over 5.50% after the bank missed its quarterly profit expectations, citing slower loan growth and higher provisions for bad loans.

Meanwhile, broader indices were also trading in red, with the BSE Midcap and Small-cap indexes falling between 0.35 and 0.40%. Further, weakness prevailed in the markets as industry body Ficci lowered India's growth projection for the current financial year to 6.4% from 7% estimated earlier.

On the global front, Asian markets traded mostly in green after China’s fourth-quarter GDP beat estimates. China's gross domestic product expanded 5.4% on year in the fourth quarter of 2024, exceeding expectations for 5.0% and up from 4.6% in Q3. Back home, on the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up positions in Energy, Metal, Capital Goods, Oil & Gas and FMCG, while selling was witnessed in IT, Bankex, TECK, Auto and Healthcare.

The BSE Sensex traded at 76451.75, down by 591.07 points or 0.77%, after trading in a range of 76263.29 and 77069.19. The index had 14 stocks advancing and 16 stocks declining.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE mid-cap index was down by 0.35%, while the small-cap index was down by 0.39%.

The NIFTY50 traded at 23151.60, down 160.20 points or 0.69% after trading in a range of 23100.35 and 23292.10. The index had 26 stocks advancing and 24 stocks declining.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng advanced 55.48 points or 0.28% to 19,578.37, Jakarta Composite gained 31.58 points or 0.44% to 7,139.10, Shanghai Composite strengthened 13.79 points or 0.43% to 3,249.82, Straits Times rose 8.2 points or 0.22% to 3,809.33. However, Taiwan Weighted added 94.09 points or 0.41% to 23,119.19, KOSPI dropped 4.82 points or 0.19% to 2,522.67 and Nikkei 225 slipped 174.54 points or 0.45% to 38,398.06.