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Informist, Wednesday, Jul. 22, 2026

 

By Gopika Balasubramanium

 

MUMBAI – Benchmark equity indices ended lower on Wednesday as sentiment was hit by a spike in crude oil prices to more than $90 a barrel and the US' move to impose steeper tariffs on generic drugs from 2028 to drive manufacturing in the US. Traders sold large-cap and mid-cap generic drug companies throughout the session, even when details on execution and final scope are unclear. Bajaj Auto was the top gainer in the Nifty 50 index with 5% gains, outperforming the benchmark indices by a wide margin. 

 

On Wednesday, the Nifty 50 index closed at 23996.25 points, down 191.45 points or 0.8%. The 50-stock index fell below crucial support of 24000 points during the second half of the session and hovered around 24980 points till the close. The index fell to a low of 23961.40 points intraday. The BSE Sensex closed at 76755.05 points, down 715.06 points or 0.9%.

 

Broader market indices were hit harder than the benchmark peers and closed 1-2% lower. Dalal Street's fear gauge, India VIX, jumped nearly 6%, indicating nervousness among traders as crude oil inched near $95 a barrel during the day, hitting a five-week high. At 1535 IST, the near-month futures contract of Brent crude oil traded on the InterContinental Exchange was at $95.34 a barrel.    

 

Early Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said, in a Truth Social post, that generic companies would face 100% tariffs on drugs brought to the US from August 2028 if they fail to move their production to the US. The tariff would be doubled to 200% in August 2029, he said. However, the policies related to patented, branded, or innovative drugs would remain as they are, he added. Analysts termed Wednesday's sharp fall in shares of companies tied to generic manufacturing as a "kneejerk" reaction from traders.  

 

"Several generic pharma companies already have manufacturing facilities in the US, which could partially mitigate the impact," Param Desai, research analyst at PL Capital said, in a note. "However, a two-year window appears too short to relocate the entire generic pharmaceutical value chain to the US. Trump's term ends in January 2029, while the major tariff impact begins from August 2028, so the eventual implementation remains uncertain if there is a change in administration."

 

Shares of pharma majors such as Cipla, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, and Dr. Reddy's Laboratories ended 1-2% lower. These companies alongside mid-caps such as Gland Pharma, Aurobindo Pharma, Lupin, and Zydus Lifesciences could remain sensitive to tariff-related developments due to their significant US revenue exposure, analysts said. These mid-cap pharma stocks closed 2-4% lower. Barring Divis Laboratories and Abbott India, all the 18 Nifty Pharma constituents ended lower. The sectoral index ended 1.9% lower. 

 

Some analysts expect the proposed two-year transition period to fetch optimum time to recalibrate their manufacturing footprint and supply chains to the US. Meanwhile, some are doubtful whether the two years would be sufficient to build the required infrastructure and get regulatory approvals to start production.

 

 

Moving on to other major movements, Bajaj Auto hit a two-year high of INR 10,999 on Wednesday after reporting higher-than-expected earnings for the June quarter. The sentiment was also positive on the back of the company's plan to complete the overhaul of its strategically important motorcycle segment housing two-wheelers with an engine capacity exceeding 125 cubic centimetres over the next six weeks. The stock closed around 6% higher at INR 10,998.50. Emkay Research raised its target price on the stock by over 5% to INR 13,700 and retained its "buy" recommendation. Brokerage Nuvama Institutional expects the company's launch pipeline and exports to aid growth. The brokerage raised its target price on the stock to INR 12,000 from INR 11,600 and retained its "buy" call.

 

Meanwhile, shares of fast-moving consumer goods major Nestle India closed nearly 3% higher after the company announced strong June quarter earnings on the back of robust volume growth. The company's net profit for the quarter rose nearly 48% on year and exceeded the Street's expectations on both the bottom line and the top line. Other large-cap FMCG companies such as Tata Consumer Products and Hindustan Unilever closed 0.5-0.9% higher.

 

Among Nifty 200 stocks, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services ended over 8% higher, taking the top spot. The company expects its net interest margin to be around 7% in the medium term. Its Apr-Jun net profit also came in higher-than-expected. On other hand, shares of Oracle Financial Services closed around 7% lower ahead of its June quarter earnings.  

 

Bandhan Bank ended nearly 17% higher at INR 173.50. The company fell to INR 171.56, its lowest level since Apr. 24. The lender's guidance for 2026-27 (Apr-Mar) likely disappointed the Street. It expects its return on assets to average 1.2-1.4% by the end of FY27, which is 40 basis points lower than its earlier aspiration of 1.6-1.8%. The bank's net interest margin may decline over the next two quarters, its top executive had said Tuesday. Nuvama downgraded the bank's to "hold" from "buy" and target price by 8% to INR 230. The broking firm also cut its estimate of the bank's earnings for FY27-FY29 by 11-14% on lower-than-expected June quarter earnings and weak margin guidance. Meanwhile, shares of Data Patterns (India) ended around 13% higher after the defence technology company emerged as the lowest bidder for Hindustan Aeronautics' tender worth INR 13 billion for Buffer amplifier and Built-In Test Equipment modules. 

 

* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 11 rose, 39 fell

* Of the Sensex stocks, 6 rose, 24 fell

* On the NSE, 1,068 stocks rose, 2,223 fell, and 109 were unchanged

* On the BSE, 1,459 stocks rose, 2,779 fell, and 193 were unchanged
* Nifty Media: down 2.7%; Nifty Realty: down 2.6%; Nifty FMCG: up 0.7%

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BSE                                            NSE

Sensex: 76755.05, down 715.06 points or 0.9%   Nifty 50: 23996.25, down 191.45 points, or 0.8%

 

S&P BSE Sensitive Index	Nifty 50
Lifetime High: 86159.02 (Dec. 1, 2025)	: Lifetime High: 26373.20 (Jan. 5, 2026)
Record Close High: 85836.12 (Sept. 26, 2024)	: Record Close High: 26328.55 (Jan. 2, 2026)
2026 1st day close: 85188.60 (Jan. 1)	: 2026 1st day close: 26146.55 (Jan. 1)
2026 Closing High: 85762.01 (Jan. 2)	: 2026 Closing High: 26328.55 (Jan. 2)
2026 Closing Low: 71947.55 (Mar. 30)	: 2026 Closing Low: 22331.40 (Mar. 30)
2026 High (intraday): 85883.50 (Jan. 5)	: 2026 High (intraday): 26373.20 (Jan. 5)
2026 Low (intraday): 71545.81 (Apr. 1)	: 2026 Low (intraday): 22182.55 (Apr.2)
2025 1st day close: 78507.41 (Jan. 1)	: 2025 1st day close: 23742.90 (Jan. 1)
2025 Closing High: 85720.38 (Nov. 27)	: 2025 Closing High: 26215.55 (Nov. 27)
2025 Closing Low: 72989.93 (Mar. 4)	: 2025 Closing Low: 22082.65 (Mar. 4)
2025 High (intraday): 86159.02 (Dec. 1)	: 2025 High (intraday): 26325.80 (Dec.1)
2025 Low (intraday): 71425.01 (Apr. 7)	: 2025 Low (intraday): 21743.65 (Apr. 7)
2024 1st day close: 72271.94 (Jan. 1)	: 2024 1st day close: 21741.90 (Jan. 1)
2024 Closing High: 85836.12 (Sept. 26)	: 2024 Closing High: 26216.05 (Sept. 26)
2024 Closing Low: 70370.55 (Jan. 23)	: 2024 Closing Low: 21238.80 (Jan. 23)
2024 High (intraday): 85978.25 (Sep. 27)	: 2024 High (intraday): 26277.35 (Sept. 27)
2024 Low (intraday): 70001.60 (Jan. 24)	: 2024 Low (intraday): 21137.20 (Jan. 24)
2023 1st day close: 61167.79 (Jan. 2)	: 2023 1st day close: 18197.45 (Jan. 2)
2023 Closing High: 72410.38 (Dec. 28)	: 2023 Closing High: 21778.70 (Dec. 28)
2023 Closing Low: 59288.35 (Feb. 27)	: 2023 Closing Low: 17311.80 (Oct. 17)
2023 High (intraday): 72484.34 (Dec. 28)	: 2023 High (intraday): 21801.45 (Dec. 28)
2023 Low (intraday): 58699.20 (Jan. 30)	: 2023 Low (intraday): 17098.55 (Jan. 17)
2022 1st day close: 59183.22 (Jan. 3)	: 2022 1st day close: 17625.70 (Jan. 3)
2022 Closing High: 63284.19 (Dec. 1)	: 2022 Closing High: 18812.50 (Dec. 1)
2022 Closing Low: 51360.42 (Jun. 17)	: 2022 Closing Low: 15293.50 (Jun. 17)
2022 High (intraday): 63583.07 (Dec. 1)	: 2022 High (intraday): 18887.60 (Dec. 1)
2022 Low (intraday): 50921.22 (Jun. 17)	: 2022 Low (intraday): 15183.40 (Jun. 17)
2021 Closing High: 61305.95 (Oct. 14)	: 2021 Closing High: 18338.55 (Oct. 14)
2021 Closing Low: 46285.77 (Jan. 29)	: 2021 Closing Low: 13634.60 (Jan. 29)
2021 High (intraday): 61353.25 (Oct. 14)	: 2021 High (intraday): 18350.75 (Oct. 14)
2021 Low (intraday): 46160.46 (Jan. 29)	: 2021 Low (intraday): 13596.75 (Jan. 29)
2020 Closing High: 47751.33 (Dec. 31)	: 2020 Closing High: 13981.95 (Dec. 30)
2020 Closing Low: 25981.24 (Mar. 23)	: 2020 Closing Low: 7610.25 (Mar. 23)
2020 High (intraday): 47896.97 (Dec. 31)	: 2020 High (intraday): 14024.85 (Dec. 31)
2020 Low (intraday): 25638.90 (Mar. 24)	: 2020 Low (intraday): 7511.10 (Mar. 24)
2019 High (intraday): 41809.96 (Dec. 20)	: 2019 High (intraday): 12293.90 (Dec. 20)
2019 Low (intraday): 35287.16 (Feb. 19)	: 2019 Low (intraday): 10583.65 (Jan. 29)
2018 High (intraday): 38938.91(Aug. 28))	: 2018 High(intraday): 11760.20 (Aug. 28)
2018 Low (intraday): 32483.8 (Mar. 23)	: 2018 Low (intraday): 9951.9 (Mar. 23)
2017 High (intraday): 34005.37 (Dec. 26)	: 2017 High(intraday): 10515.10 (Dec. 26)

 

End

 

US$1 = INR 96.57

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

 

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