Sensex and Nifty Closing Updates, 1st April, 2025: Sensex ends 1391 points lower, Nifty tumbles 353.65 points

Sensex and Nifty Closing Updates, 1st April, 2025: Sensex ends 1391 points lower, Nifty tumbles 353.65 points

Markets Tumble On Tariff Fears

A substantial fall on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, greeted the start of the new financial year in the Indian equity markets, as the stocks were in the red throughout the day. The Sensex and the Nifty fell sharply for the second session in a row, as it was primarily led down by IT and banking stocks. Investor sentiment on the whole was cautious and negative, overshadowed by increasing fears about U.S. President Donald Trump's impending announcement of sweeping reciprocal tariffs on April 2, which Trump himself has labeled "Liberation Day."

Performance of Key Benchmark Indices

The Sensex closed down 1,391 points at 76,024.51 or down 1.80%. The Nifty 50 also closed 353.65 points, or 1.50% lower, at 23,165.70. The Nifty too shattered the 24,200 mark. The BSE Midcap index also fell 1 percent while the smallcap index closed flat. It marked the worst start to a financial year for the Sensex since the 2020 crash.

Sectoral Performance

Nearly all of the major sectors were in the red, with notable declines Nifty IT, Realty, Financial Services and Consumer Durables 1-3 %. The Nifty IT sector was the biggest loser, down by 2.45%, due to an outsized dependence on the U.S. market and worries about softer demand. On the other hand, the Nifty Media sector started the day on a positive note with a increase of 2.24%. The Nifty OC sectors of Oil & Gas and Telecom are also closed in the green.

There were several reasons for the market slump:

• Investors globally were jittery about the potential implications of the widespread reciprocal tariffs expected to be announced by President Trump on April 2.
• IT Stocks Decline: Weak demand conditions from a major revenue contributor, the U.S. market, raised concerns and dragged IT stocks. The sector had previously 10% fall in the March quarter.
• Profit Booking: With the Nifty and Sensex rallying nearly 5.4% in the last eight sessions, moving into the green for the year, investors booked profits causing markets to pull back.
• Surging Oil Prices: Oil prices are stuck around a five-week peak, with crude at $74.67 a barrel for Brent and at $71.37 for WTI, stoking inflation fears, threatening pain for India's fiscal deficit and hurting corporate profit margins.
  
  Since there was a significant sell-off in the US market on the previous Friday, the Indian markets too saw a negative impact in the light of the global cues. European and some Asian markets managed to recover, but caution remained as US tariffs loomed.
  

Key Stock Movements

Despite the overall downtrend, some individual stocks saw a lot of movement:

•   Vodafone Idea: Shares hit a 10% upper circuit (and even caught a 20% at one stage) after the government decided to convert ₹36,950 crore of its dues into equity, boosting the government's stake to 48.99%.
  • HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd): Shares jump over 7% (and rally as high as 8%) after bagging a ₹62,700 crore deal from the Defence Ministry for 156 Light Combat Helicopters.
  • HBL Engineering: Shares jumped 9% after the company won ₹762 crore contracts from Central Railways for supply of Kavach.
  • IndusInd Bank: Saw a surge of over 5-6% after news emerged of several deals concerning transfer of well-rated corporate loans for liquidity improvements.
  • Trent: Also one of the top Nifty gainers up by around 5%.
  • HCL Technologies, Bajaj Finserv: Were among the top losers on the Nifty, down 4% and 3%, respectively.
  • UCO Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank: Crashes after QIP allotment details. Punjab & Sind Bank dropped as much as 20%.
  
  

Expert Sources and Market Perspectives

Analysts said volatility was likely to persist in the near future amid uncertainty over tariffs Trump will announce. Others recommended patience and refraining from knee-jerk reactions to a down market. Technical analysts had previously signaled a potential for continuing a market rally but warned of resistance levels and the impact of on news of potential new tariffs. The duration and announcement of the upcoming monetary policy by the RBI were also mentioned as an important event to watch out for.

Market Current Update

• Sensex: The BSE Sensex plunged by 1,314.18 points, trading at 76,100.33 as of mid-session. This marks a steep decline of 1.70% from its previous close of 77,414.92.
• Nifty: The NSE Nifty dropped below the critical 23,200 mark, trading at 23,176 after falling by over 344 points or 1.47% during mid-day hours.

Top Gainers

1. Trent Ltd (TATA Group’s Retail Arm)

• Opening Price: ₹5,350.85
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹5,582.60
  
  
• Percentage Change: +4.83%
  Trent Ltd continues its bullish momentum following its strong expansion strategy and recent milestone of 1,000+ fashion stores. The stock gained 4.83% as investors remain confident in its growth prospects.
  

2. IndusInd Bank

• Opening Price: ₹649.00
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹680.50
  
  
• Percentage Change: +4.72%
  IndusInd Bank saw strong buying interest, possibly driven by positive sectoral trends in banking and financials. The stock surged 4.72%, indicating strong institutional inflows.
  

3. HDFC Life Insurance

• Opening Price: ₹695.00
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹705.75
  
  
• Percentage Change: +1.47%
  The insurance sector remains resilient, and HDFC Life gained 1.47%, reflecting positive investor sentiment in the life insurance segment amid economic stability.
  

4. Adani Enterprises

• Opening Price: ₹2,132.00
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹2,345.00
  
  
• Percentage Change: +1.26%
  The stock saw steady gains amid renewed investor confidence in the Adani Group after recent global investment inflows and infrastructure expansion.
  

5. Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories

• Opening Price: ₹1,144.20
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹1,158.25
  
  
• Percentage Change: +1.23%
  Strong demand for pharma stocks, driven by global healthcare trends and robust financial performance, contributed to Dr. Reddy’s 1.23% increase.
  

Trent Ltd led the market gains, followed closely by IndusInd Bank. The broader trend indicates strong buying in the retail, banking, insurance, and pharma sectors.

Top Losers 

1. Infosys (INFY) – IT Sector Under Pressure

• Opening Price: ₹1,539.25
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹1,519.25
  
  
• Percentage Change: -3.27%
  Infosys saw the steepest decline among blue-chip stocks, dropping by 3.27%. Weak global IT spending and concerns over margin pressures have impacted the sentiment in the IT sector.
  

2. HDFC Bank – Banking Sector Decline

• Opening Price: ₹1,802.00
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹1,775.40
  
  
• Percentage Change: -2.89%
  HDFC Bank faced a 2.89% drop amid broader banking sector weakness, possibly due to concerns over net interest margins and higher provisioning for bad loans.
  

3. Bajaj Finserv – Financial Sector Weakness

• Opening Price: ₹1,998.10
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹1,937.80
  
  
• Percentage Change: -2.91%
  Bajaj Finserv’s stock fell as financial services companies experienced selling pressure due to concerns about rising interest rates affecting loan growth.
  

4. Axis Bank – Profit Booking in Banking Stocks

• Opening Price: ₹1,093.20
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹1,072.10
  
  
• Percentage Change: -2.07%
  After a recent rally, Axis Bank saw profit booking, leading to a 2.07% decline. Investors may have taken gains off the table after recent positive earnings reports.
  

5. Bajaj Finance – NBFCs Under Pressure

• Opening Price: ₹8,783.30
  
  
• Closing Price (LTP): ₹8,721.70
  
  
• Percentage Change: -2.50%
  Bajaj Finance fell 2.50% as non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) saw pressure amid rising borrowing costs and regulatory concerns over loan growth sustainability.
  The market witnessed sharp declines in IT and banking stocks, with Infosys and HDFC Bank leading the losses. Financial stocks, particularly NBFCs like Bajaj Finserv and Bajaj Finance, also saw a downturn due to macroeconomic concerns.

Market Open

Indian benchmark indices BSE Sensex and Nifty50 started Tuesday's session in the red, with investors awaiting more details on the reciprocal tariffs, which will come into effect on April 2, 2025. The Sensex, at the opening bell, was trading at 76,882.58 points, lower by 532.34 points or -0.69%, and the Nifty50 at 23,341.10 points, lower by 153.60 points or -0.65%. Traders will continue to trade with caution, signals from global cues, announcements from US President Donald Trump on trade tariffs will be watched closely and so will be the trading by Foreign Institutional Investors.

Factors Influencing Market Sentiment

• US Tariffs: US tariffs: Wednesday, April 2, is Liberation Day, says US President Donald Trump, and all countries will come under a uniform global tariff. “We would begin with all countries, so let’s see what happens,” he said. 
• Global markets: Global equities rose broadly on Monday and Tuesday morning as investors awaited additional details about Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. U.S. markets mostly finished higher, while Asia-Pacific markets started Tuesday’s trading on a positive note. 
• RBI Monetary Policy: Between 7-9 April, the RBI Monetary Policy Committee is meeting, a 25 bps rate cut is expected. A continued monetary easing, as the central bank is also expected to ensure easy liquidity in the market, with particular attention to its FY26 GDP and inflation expectations.

Global Backdrop:

• US Dollar: On Tuesday morning, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which assesses the value of the greenback against six significant currencies, slid by 0.10% to 104.11, whereas the rupee appreciated by 0.37%, settling at 85.47 per dollar on March 28. 

• Gold Rate Today: Gold is still shining bright and currently, the price of 24-carat gold has hit a new record of Rs 89,330 per 10 grams, registering weekly profit of 1.5%, monthly return (intermediate) of 5.77%, while 22-karat gold stands at Rs 81,886 per 10 grams and 18-carat at Rs 66,998.

• Crude Oil: Crude oil prices also slipped on Tuesday, with WTI crude priced at $71.41 and Brent crude at $74.70, in each case a loss of 0.10%.

Stocks in Focus:

• Vodafone Idea (Vi): The government cleared the conversion of dues into equity, approving the issuing of shares worth ₹36,950 crore at ₹10 each, raising its stake; Citi analysts assume large cash flow relief over the next three years.
• Adani Energy Solutions (ADES): Complete acquisition of Mahan Transmission, assuming total control of the SPV via a consolidation sale of shares agreement.
• HCLTech: Chosen as the Design Solution Partner for Samsung’s Advanced Foundry Ecosystem (SAFE) programme.
• Asian Paints: Setting up a Gujarat chemical plant at ₹3,250 crore; Expanding expansion plan.
• JSW Steel: Won the bid to operate Dugda Coal Washery in Jharkhand for a 25-year period.
• Force Motors:  Lowest bidder to supply 2,978 Force Gurkha light vehicles to Indian Defence Forces.
• LTIMindtree: Ropes in Google Cloud to implement AgenticAI for business transformation
• NCC: New orders received in March 2025 (₹5,773 crore).
• DCM Shriram: Inaugurated new 300 TPD flexi-fuel flaker plant in Gujarat.
• Newgen Software Technologies: Its US subsidiary signed a deal worth $1.27 million with a global customer.
• Engineers India: Won contracts worth ₹245 crore for legal consultancy services for projects in Maharashtra and West Bengal.
• HBL Engineering: Received ₹762.56 crore worth of acceptance letters for the Kavach Railway Safety System.
• HAL: FY ending March 31, 2025 provisional revenue of ₹30,400 crore; signed defence contracts worth ₹62,700 crore.
• Aditya Birla Real Estate: Nodded to the sale of the company’s pulp and paper business unit to ITC for ₹3,498 crore.
• Bosch: Received an Income Tax notice of over ₹20 crore received.
• Yes Bank: Forced the issue a demand notice for ₹2,209 crore.
• AU Small Finance Bank: Raised ₹770 crore through the issuance of Tier-II bonds.

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