Indian equity markets have extended their losses in afternoon session led by selling in mainly banking and auto sector stocks. The banking stocks came under pressure after traders reacted to the Reserve Bank of India’s new Prudential Norms on Declaration of Dividend and Remittances of Profits which will take effect from the financial year (FY) 2026-27. Besides, ongoing conflict in West Asia continued to weigh on investors’ sentiments. Further, ICRA in its report has said that there will be a downside risk to the India’s growth projection for FY2027 due to conflict is West Asia.

On the global front, Asian equity markets were trading mixed as traders kept close eye on developments in West Asia. European equity markets were trading lower after crude oil prices regained strength despite reports indicating the International Energy Agency (IEA) proposed the largest release of oil reserves in its history to offset supply disruptions stemming from the war on Iran.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 77053.07, down by 1152.91 points or 1.47% after trading in a range of 76926.89 and 78324.37. There were 5 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 0.84%, Oil & Gas up by 0.78%, Healthcare up by 0.47%, Energy up by 0.45%, Power up by 0.38%, while Auto down by 2.76%, Bankex down by 1.72%, Consumer Discretionary down by 1.52%, TECK down by 1.22%, Realty down by 1.17% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 1.07%, Sun Pharma up by 0.94%, Power Grid up by 0.64%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.42% and ITC up by 0.08%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 4.36%, Axis Bank down by 3.79%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.61%, Bajaj Finserv down by 3.51% and Maruti Suzuki down by 2.66% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister J P Nadda has said that India's active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) exports reached at Rs 41,493 crore in FY25, surpassing total API imports of Rs 39,215 crore. He said ‘so, it should be very clear that we are exporting more APIs than we are importing.’ He asserted that in the last 11 years, the central government has undertaken several key initiatives and policy measures to boost domestic production and reduce imports.   

The minister said India's imports of APIs (bulk drugs, drug intermediates) stood at Rs 36,229 crore in FY23, Rs 37,721 crore in FY24 and Rs 39,214 crore in FY25. The imports from China were Rs 25,551 crore in FY23, Rs 27,055 crore in FY24 and Rs 29,064 crore in FY25. He said the share of China has increased to 74 per cent in FY25 from 70 per cent in FY23.  

He further said the government has started a production linked incentive (PLI) scheme with an outlay of Rs 6,940 crore to promote the manufacturing of the key starting materials (KSM), drug intermediaries and the APIs, and to reduce import reliance on China. He said anti-dumping duty and minimum import price have been fixed to maintain the market. He added that the government is taking all comprehensive steps to make the nation self-reliant in the pharmaceutical sector. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23924.30, down by 337.30 points or 1.39% after trading in a range of 23892.00 and 24299.00. There were 13 stocks advancing against 37 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were JIO Financial up by 1.59%, Sun Pharma up by 1.04%, NTPC up by 1.02%, Coal India up by 1.01% and Wipro up by 0.88%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 4.30%, Axis Bank down by 3.82%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.70%, Bajaj Finserv down by 3.56% and Eicher Motors down by 3.28% were the top losers.

Asian equity markets were trading mixed; Nikkei 225 surged 686.61 points or 1.25% to 54,935.00, Taiwan Weighted added 1342.32 points or 3.93% to 34,114.19, KOSPI increased 77.36 points or 1.38% to 5,609.95 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 10.29 points or 0.25% to 4,133.43, while Hang Seng declined 70.9 points or 0.27% to 25,889.00, Straits Times fell 6.76 points or 0.14% to 4,853.88 and Jakarta Composite plunged 40.69 points or 0.55% to 7,400.22.

European equity markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 107.69 points or 1.05% to 10,304.55, France’s CAC fell 83.46 points or 1.05% to 7,973.90 and Germany’s DAX lost 400.33 points or 1.7% to 23,568.30.