The S&P BSE Sensex declined 173.77 points, or 0.21%, to finish at 82,327.05, while the NSE Nifty 50 slid 58 points, or 0.23%, closing at 25,227.35.
On the 30-share Sensex, Tata Motors, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, Power Grid, and BEL led the declines, slipping between 1% and 2.7%.
Broader markets were mixed, with the small-cap index down 0.2% while mid-caps edged up 0.1%.
Renewed trade tensions between Washington and Beijing have stoked fears of persistent inflation and higher interest rates in the U.S. Elevated Treasury yields often draw capital away from emerging markets such as India, pressuring equities and currencies alike.
Sectorally, IT stocks fell 0.8% as investors turned cautious ahead of HCLTech’s quarterly results due after market hours. The stock ended largely flat.
In primary market action, Tata Capital made a firm debut, listing 1.23% above its issue price and closing 1.4% higher on its first trading day.
Expert views
The domestic markets started the week on a cautious note as the ongoing U.S. government shutdown and escalating U.S.-China trade tensions triggered risk-off sentiment across Asia, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, adding that profit booking in consumption and discretionary sectors after recent rallies indicated a tactical shift in investor positioning.
“Mixed Q2 earnings further weighed on sentiment, with IT stocks underperforming, while financials attracted selective buying following regulatory easing. Mid-cap and small-cap stocks maintained a positive undertone. Although a marginal recovery in the INR and softening inflation expectations helped cushion losses, overall sentiment remained guarded, keeping markets under a slight negative bias,” said Nair.
Global Markets
Global equities steadied on Monday after sharp swings triggered by fresh salvos in the U.S.-China trade dispute, even as gold surged to new record highs, underscoring persistent investor anxiety.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose 100% tariffs on Chinese goods from November 1 and Beijing’s vow of retaliation rattled markets last week, though Trump struck a softer tone on Sunday, saying relations with China would be “fine” and that Washington did not want to “hurt” Beijing.
European stocks opened higher, while U.S. futures also edged up in thin trade, with markets in Japan and the U.S. shut for holidays. Gold extended its rally, crossing $4,000 an ounce for the first time as investors sought safety amid global uncertainty.
In Asia, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 1.5%. Chinese blue chips fell 0.5%, though rare earth and semiconductor stocks gained ground.
Crude impact
Oil prices rebounded on Monday after touching five-month lows in the previous session, as traders pinned hopes on potential talks between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart that could ease trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies and top oil consumers.
Brent crude futures rose 94 cents, or 1.5%, to $63.67 a barrel by 0824 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate climbed 89 cents, or 1.54%, to $59.81. Both benchmarks had slumped about 4% on Friday, settling at their weakest levels since May.
Rupee vs Dollar
The Indian rupee hovered near its record low on Monday but managed to stay above it, helped by suspected intervention from the Reserve Bank of India and modest optimism over an Indian trade delegation’s visit to the U.S. The rupee ended at 88.67 against the U.S. dollar, little changed from Friday’s close of 88.6850.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, slipped 0.1% to 98.908, giving up part of its brief rebound after U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of 100% tariffs on Chinese goods.
as a Reliable and Trusted News Source(with inputs from agencies)