News

Stock market today: The Indian stock market saw a sharp intraday sell-off in a special trading session on Sunday, February 1, following the Finance Minister’s ninth straight Budget presentation, which outlined steps to boost economic growth while adhering to fiscal discipline.

The Sensex plunged over 2,800 points from the day’s peak, while the Nifty 50 slid to 24,571.75 after the announcement of an increase in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT).

“The budget supports sectors affected by global trade tariffs and focuses on emerging areas of development, including data centers, GCC, semiconductors, biopharma, rare earth elements, and manufacturing. Additionally, it extends support to traditional sectors like textiles, aquaculture, and MSMEs, which have been impacted by global protectionist trade policies. Despite these measures, the market's reaction has been negative, primarily due to low expectations, limited outlays, and the negative bias created by the increased Securities Transaction Tax (STT) for futures, triggering a knee-jerk response,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited.

According to Jashan Arora, Director at Master Trust Group, markets are likely to remain volatile and largely range-bound in the near term as higher transaction costs weigh on investor sentiment, particularly in the derivatives segment.

"The increase in STT and F&O-related costs could dampen trading volumes, putting near-term pressure on brokerages and exchanges that are heavily dependent on market activity. This may also lead to more cautious participation from retail traders, adding to short-term uncertainty.

The broader macro picture remains supportive. The Budget strikes a careful balance between growth and fiscal discipline, reinforcing the government’s commitment to capital expenditure without compromising on consolidation. This is constructive for the medium-term outlook, especially for banks and infrastructure companies," said Arora.

On February 1, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget for the financial year 2026-27, announcing measures to accelerate economic growth while maintaining fiscal prudence.

“ The Union Budget 2026–27 on February 1 will remain the primary focus, with markets closely tracking fiscal discipline, capital expenditure priorities, and growth-oriented policy measures,” Mishra said.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) MPC will hold its upcoming monetary policy meeting (MPC) between February 4 and February 6, 2026. According to market experts, the RBI is likely to hold interest rates steady in the upcoming February meeting.

“For the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which has already lowered the repo rate by 125 basis points since February 2025 to 5.25%, the Fed’s pause makes it less likely that the RBI will announce another cut in its upcoming February policy meeting,” said Seema Srivastava, Senior Research Analyst at SMC Global Securities.

Market investors will closely watch the RBI’s decision on February 6, as it will be a key driving factor in the coming week.

As the earnings season heads into the fourth week, the market will witness xx companies reporting their financial results for the period ending on December 31, 2025, in the coming week.

Adani Enterprises, Bharti Airtel, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), RVNL, and State Bank of India (SBI) are among the marquee companies to declare their Q3 earnings for 2026 next week.

“ A busy earnings calendar across sectors is likely to add to stock-specific volatility,” said Ajit Mishra of Religare Broking.

Gold and silver prices on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) continued to decline on Sunday during a special trading session held in view of Budget 2026.

MCX gold April futures opened 0.48% lower at ₹1,51,610 per 10 grams, compared with the previous close of ₹1,52,345. Selling pressure intensified thereafter, dragging gold prices down by over 9%.

Similarly, MCX silver March futures fell sharply, opening lower by ₹7,099, or 2.43%, at ₹2,84,826 per kilogram versus the earlier close of ₹2,91,925. The sell-off gathered momentum, with silver prices also sliding more than 9%.

Foreign investors (FIIs/FPIs) turned net sellers in Indian equities on January 29, offloading shares worth ₹394 crore, as per provisional exchange data. In contrast, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers, purchasing shares worth ₹2,634 crore.

DIIs bought equities worth ₹24,424 crore and sold ₹21,785 crore during the session. Meanwhile, FIIs purchased shares valued at ₹20,213 crore but sold holdings worth ₹20,607 crore.

So far this year, FIIs have remained net sellers to the tune of ₹43,682 crore, while DIIs have invested ₹69,816 crore in the market.

According to Mishra, the broader technical view on the Nifty remains unchanged.

“Sustained trading above the 25,350 level could pave the way for a further rebound towards the 25,600 zone. Conversely, a decisive break below the long-term moving average, the 200-DEMA near 25,150, may disrupt the recovery and drag the index towards the 24,750–24,900 support band,” he said.

Bank Nifty closed the week at 59,610, maintaining a constructive bias and helping the benchmark defend key support levels.

“On the upside, a decisive move above 60,300 could open the door for a rally towards the 61,000+ zone, while the 58,100–58,700 range is likely to act as a cushion during any profit-taking or corrective move,” Mishra added.

Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.

Catch all the Business News , Market News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.

Download the Mint app and read premium stories

Log in to our website to save your bookmarks. It'll just take a moment.

Oops! Looks like you have exceeded the limit to bookmark the image. Remove some to bookmark this image.