The last couple of days have been eventful in global as well as Indian markets. From US equities’ slowdown to positives in Indian corporates, investors are walking on a tightrope of caution and opportunity. Let’s take a dive into the details.
US Market: From Rally to Pause
The American market, which had been making new highs lately, has paused in the last two to three days. Already, the rally had been warned by analysts to be too hasty, and now markets appear to be resting.
- Tech under strain: Except for Chinese technology shares, which defied the trend by rising on news that it is spending significantly on artificial intelligence (AI), weakness was observed across most segments.
- Lithium Americas explodes on high: Lithium Americas stock doubled in one day with the US government investment news in the company driving sentiment in the EV space higher.
- Healthcare controversy: US President Donald Trump fueled controversy with the suggestion that paracetamol was more than likely to lead to autism in children and warned pregnant women against its use. Doctors and the Medical Council debunked the suggestion, rejecting that there is no scientific proof.
Commodities: Copper Prices Jump
A catastrophic accident at one of Indonesia’s main copper mines has halted production, sending shivers down the spines of global supply. Copper prices increased as a result, making profits for companies engaged in the processing of copper.
Tata Motors Under Pressure
Tata Motors shares saw ferocious selling following a cyber attack brought Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) production to a halt until November. With the losses not being insured, the company will have to absorb the losses, compressing the margins.
Sector Performance
Dalal Street’s lone sector which closed in green was metals, supported by the global boost in copper. The rest of the major indices closed in the red.
- Finotex – To deliberate bonus and dividend on September 27.
- Veedol – Introduced new full synthetic engine oils in the Swift Power and Synth Glide brand names.
- Maharashtra Seamless Pipe – Booked order of ₹256 crore, enhancing order book visibility.
- Polycab – To sell 0.81% holding at floor price of ₹7,300 with discount of 3.09%.
- Tata Steel – To invest ₹4,054.66 crore in Tata Steel Holding and buy 457.7 crore shares.
- Lupin – Gets USFDA approval to produce a generic form of an HIV medicine. at its Nagpur plant.
- Dalmia Bharat – ₹2,273.36 crore land purchase deal provisionally attached by ED.
- Glenmark Pharma – Its subsidiary entered into a licensing agreement with Hengrui Pharma for oncology medication Trastuzumab Rezetecan; deal involves $18m upfront + $1.093b milestone payments.
- IPCA Labs – Partnership with BSS for cancer and autoimmune disease drug development.
- HCL Tech – Part of Microsoft's 2025-26 AI Business Circle.
Several big orders were won by Indian companies in infrastructure, defence, and energy:
- L&T – ₹2,800 crore EPC order for Mumbai Metro Line 12 extension.
- BEL – ₹1,200 crore order for Indian Navy's defence electronics.
- Adani Ports – Long-term cargo handling contract with Sri Lanka Port Authority.
- BHEL – ₹950 crore order from NTPC for thermal power gear.
- Tata Power Solar – ₹1,100 crore Rajasthan solar EPC project.
- RVNL – ₹600 crore Odisha railway electrification order.
- KEC International – ₹850 crore Bangladesh transmission lines contract.
- NBCC – ₹400 crore Delhi Cantonment redevelopment project.
- Ashoka Buildcon – ₹700 crore Maharashtra highway construction order.
- Kalpataru Projects – ₹500 crore Gujarat transmission infra contract.
- HDFC Bank – Sold 1.2% stake in HDFC Life for ₹1,050 crore in block deal.
- Infosys – Purchased US-based AI company QuantEdge for $120 million.
- Reliance Retail – Acquired majority stake in Urban Ladder for ₹350 crore.
- JSW Steel – Sold minority stake in US subsidiary.
- Piramal Pharma – Sold OTC business to Emami for ₹450 crore.
- Tata Communications – Purchased 51% stake in Indonesian cloud company.
- Mahindra Logistics – Invested ₹75 crore in EV fleet start-up.
- ICICI Lombard – Offloaded 0.5% holding in ICICI Securities.
- Zomato – Sold logistics unit to Delhivery for ₹220 crore.
- Biocon Biologics – Bought biosimilar assets of a US firm for $90 million.
- SEBI nods Ola Electric IPO to mop up ₹7,500 crore.
- CCI approves Shriram Finance – Shriram City Union merger.
- NCLT approves Hinduja Group's Reliance Capital resolution plan.
- DGCA clears Jet Airways revised revival plan.
- MoEF approved Vedanta's zinc expansion.
- RBI clears Axis Bank acquisition of stake in a fintech company.
- IRDAI approves Go Digit's IPO.
- SEBI approval for Tata Technologies' IPO.
- Cabinet approves ₹3,000 crore PLI scheme for packaging of semi-conductors.
- FIPB approves foreign investment in Aditya Birla Capital.
- NTPC – Issued ₹1,200 crore tender for green hydrogen pilot project.
- NHAI – Issued bids for ₹2,500 crore expressway package in UP.
- Coal India – Bidding for ₹800 crore contract for development of mine has started.
- Indian Railways – Tender for ₹1,000 crore components of Vande Bharat train.
- GAIL – Invited bids for development of Andhra Pradesh LNG terminal.
- ONGC – Released ₹600 crore tender for maintenance of offshore rigs.
- Bharat Dynamics – Invited bidding for production of anti-tank missile.
- Power Grid – ₹900 crore tender to upgrade substation.
- HAL – Invited bids for ₹400 crore helicopter engine components.
- SAIL – ₹500 cr coke oven battery upgradation tender.
- Buy: Hindustan Oil Exploration, Oil India, Prism Johnson (Vaishali Parekh).
- Breakout: Power Grid Corporation – Target ₹320.
- Bullish: Muthoot Finance – festive season gold loan demand.
- Buy: Tata Motors DVR (ICICI Direct) – in anticipation of EV push.
- Upgrade: L&T to 'Buy' (Motilal Oswal).
- Coverage: Mazagon Dock – 'Accumulate' (Axis Securities).
- Downgrade: Infosys due to margin stress (Kotak Institutional Equities).
- Positive: Adani Enterprises (JM Financial).
- Buy: IRCTC (Edelweiss) – festive travel season.
- Select: SBI Cards (Nuvama Wealth) – festive pickup in spending.
- Global caution: US markets are taking a breather after all-time highs; keep an eye out for cues on tech bounce.
- Commodities play: Copper prices could remain high in the near term, supporting Indian metal stocks.
- Corporate momentum: Firm orders pipeline and M&A activity highlights India's economic resilience.
- Stock recommendations: Metals, infra, and festival demand-driven plays (gold loans, travel, consumer finance) appear to be good.