Sensex down 150 pts, Nifty below 24,600 as RBI keeps repo rate unchanged; all sectors in red

Benchmark indices Nifty and Sensex continued lower in afternoon trade on August 6, weighed down by broad-based sectoral weakness, after the Reserve Bank of India held interest rates steady amid rising global uncertainty triggered by US President Donald Trump’s renewed tariff threats.

At about 12:10 pm, the Sensex was down 114.68 points or 0.14 percent at 80,595.57, and the Nifty was down 61.40 points or 0.25 percent at 24,588.15. About 966 shares advanced, 2461 shares declined, and 127 shares were unchanged.

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"President Trump’s recent statements and policy actions are expected to keep market sentiment under pressure in the near term. India’s response so far has been restrained, but increasingly firm and calibrated. It's unlikely that India will yield to what are seen as unjustified demands from the US administration. This could result in some near-term economic headwinds, including a dip in exports and a slight downward revision in FY26 GDP growth — potentially around 6.2 percent, compared to the earlier estimate of 6.5 percent," V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said.

"In its monetary policy announcement today, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.5 percent, while maintaining a “neutral” policy stance. This comes despite rising global uncertainties, including the threat of potential US tariffs and ongoing geopolitical tensions. Significantly, the RBI retained its GDP growth forecast at 6.5 percent for FY26, citing robust domestic macroeconomic fundamentals. Inflation continues to remain well within the central bank’s comfort zone, with projections around 3 percent in FY25-26, well below the upper tolerance level," Aamar Deo Singh, VP of Research at Angel One, said.

At mid-day, sectoral indices on the NSE were trading mostly in the red, reflecting broad-based weakness across the market. The Nifty Pharma index was among the top losers, down 1.61 percent, followed by Nifty Media and Nifty IT, which slipped 1.70 percent and 1.59 percent, respectively. Realty stocks also came under pressure, with the Nifty Realty index falling 2.17 percent. Other notable laggards included Nifty Consumer Durables (-1.24 percent), Nifty Midcap 100 (-1.21 percent), and Nifty Smallcap 100 (-1.52 percent). Auto, FMCG, Energy, and Metal indices also posted declines of around 0.7 to 0.9 percent. Banking indices fared relatively better, with Nifty Bank down 0.19 percent, Nifty PSU Bank slipping 0.36 percent, and Nifty Private Bank easing 0.24 percent. The India VIX, a gauge of market volatility, rose 1.88 percent to 11.93, indicating some nervousness among traders.

Also read: MPC meeting: RBI cuts FY26 inflation forecast to 3.1% from 3.7%

Indian pharmaceutical giants like Sun Pharma, Cipla, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, and Lupin, among others, saw steep cuts of up to 2 percent in the morning on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said he would sharply raise tariffs on imported medicines. In an interview with CNBC, Trump said the new duties would begin at a modest rate but could increase significantly over time. “We’ll be putting an initially small tariff on pharmaceuticals, but in one year, one-and-a-half years, maximum, it’s going to go to 150 percent and then 250 percent.

Bharti Hexacom shares declined 4 percent on August 4 after global brokerage firm CLSA downgraded shares on to 'Underperform', following the Bharti Airtel unit's Q1 FY26 earnings report, which came in below expectations. Bharti Hexacom's revenue stood at Rs 2,260 crore, down 1 percent quarter-on-quarter, but up 18 percent year-on-year.

Gland Pharma rose 4 percent after the company's profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter ended June stood at Rs 215 crore, up 50 percent from Rs 143 crore reported in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal year. Consolidated revenue from operations figures stood at Rs 1,505 crore in Q1FY26, as against Rs 1,401 crore reported in the year-ago period, marking a rise of 7 percent.

Technical View

Nifty once again failed to hold above the 24,700 mark in the morning session and spent most of the day oscillating near the 24,600 level, reflecting a cautious undertone. The index remains at a critical juncture and requires clearer direction in the coming sessions. Our view remains unchanged — holding above the key support level of 24,500 is essential to maintain the broader uptrend. A breach below this zone could trigger deeper selling, with the next major support seen around the 24,000 mark.

Asian Paints, Trent, HUL, Adani Ports, and ICICI Bank were the top gainers on the Nifty. Laggards on the index included IndusInd Bank, Dr Reddy's, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, and Eternal.

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