Stock Market Today 25 April: Sensex Plunges 589 Pts, Nifty Near 24,000 as India-Pakistan Tensions Escalate; VIX Spikes 5%

On April 25, 2025, Indian equity markets experienced a significant downturn, with the Sensex falling by 589 points to close at 79,254, and the Nifty 50 declining by 207 points to settle at 24,059. This marked the second consecutive session of losses, driven by escalating geopolitical tensions, particularly between India and Pakistan, and profit-booking in key sectors.

• Nifty 50 is down 0.86%
• Sensex is down 0.74%
• Bank Nifty is down 0.97%

You can track daily market activity in the Ticker's Market Section. 

Key Reasons Behind Today's Market Movement

1. Global Market Cues

Global markets played a crucial role in shaping today's market:

• US Markets: Major U.S. indices posted substantial gains overnight, with the Nasdaq jumping 2.74%, the Dow Jones climbing 1.23%, and the S&P 500 up 1.57%, following tech sector optimism and cooling bond yields.
  
  - Dow Jones: 40,093 (1.23%)
  - Nasdaq: 17,166 (2.74%)
   
• Asian Markets: Followed the U.S. lead, with Nikkei up 1.93%, Hang Seng rising 1.36%, and Shanghai Composite posting marginal gains.
  
  - Nikkei: 35,714 (1.93%)
  - Hang Seng: 22,206 (1.36%)
  - Shanghai Composite: 3,693 (0.2%)

2. FII & DII Activity (23 April 2025)

FIIs: Net buyers, investing ₹8,250.53 Cr.
DIIs: Net sellers, withdrawing ₹534.54 Cr.

Did you know you can find out where FIIs or DIIs are increasing holdings using Ticker's Stock Screener for free. Just paste the query DII Holding Q1 > DII Holding Q2 in the screener and get a list of stocks where DII have increased their holdings compared to the previous quarter. 

3. Sectoral & Stock Performance

Top Performing Sectors

Except for IT, all other sectors are closed in red.

Top Gainers & Losers

From the Nifty 200 index, here is the list of top gainers and losers among stocks.

Today's trading session witnessed notable movements in the Indian stock market. Among the top gainers, SBI Life Insurance showed a significant increase of +5.12%, closing at ₹1,691.20.

Mphasis also performed well, gaining +2.38% to reach ₹2,525.40. Persistent Systems and Coforge also saw positive changes of +2.26% and +1.84% respectively, with their stock prices closing at ₹5,274.05 and ₹7,386.30.

Lastly, TCS recorded a gain of +1.36%, ending the day at ₹3,447.35. On the other hand, several stocks experienced considerable declines. Motilal Oswal Financial Services was among the top losers with a decrease of -8.13%, closing at ₹694.25.

SBI Cards and Payment Services also saw a substantial drop of -6.56%, ending at ₹866.05. ACC, Shriram Finance, and Vodafone Idea also faced significant downturns of -6.34%, -5.93%, and -5.92% respectively, with their closing prices being ₹1,936.90, ₹655.65, and ₹7.47.

These fluctuations highlight the dynamic nature of the stock market, with both buying and selling pressures influencing the prices of major stocks.

4. Macro & Economic Factors Impacting the Market

• Currency Movement: The Indian Rupee weakened to ₹85.411/USD, closing 0.21% lower amid heightened geopolitical tensions with Pakistan following a recent militant attack in Kashmir.
   
• Crude Oil Prices: Brent Crude prices fell to $65.72 per barrel, marking a decline of over 1.2% due to oversupply concerns and uncertainty around global trade talks.
   
• India VIX: The India VIX rose by 5.58% to 17.16, indicating increased market volatility amid geopolitical tensions.
   

• Gold & Silver: Gold remained firm at ₹9,824 per gram (24K), while silver held flat at ₹100.90 per gram, supported by geopolitical uncertainty and Safe-haven buying.

5. Market Sentiment & Key Triggers​​​​

• Geopolitical Tensions: Increasing stress between India and Pakistan following a militant attack in Kashmir has unsettled markets. In response, India suspended the Indus Water Treaty, and Pakistan has effectively cut off Indian airlines' flights by closing its airspace. There are concerns that they are both preparing for armed conflict.
   
• Earnings Season: Mixed corporate earnings have contributed to market volatility. While some companies reported strong Q4 results, others faced margin pressures and muted guidance, leading to stock-specific movements.
   
• Waaree Energies: The stock's lock-in period ended, resulting in a decline in the stock price even after the Q4 results.
   
• Tata Technologies: The IT services and products company of Tata Group reported March quarter results with profit growth of 20% year-on-year, with revenues of ₹1,286 crore, just slightly down from ₹1,301 crore in the previous March quarter. 

Conclusion & Investment Strategy

The Indian markets faced weakness due to geopolitical risk and the underperformance of specific sectors. Despite favourable cues from global markets and strong flows from foreign institutional investors (FIIs), investors will continue to have to navigate developments in geopolitical risk, especially with the situation involving India and Pakistan. Further escalation could lead to market conditions deteriorating.

From Finology Research Desk:

Focus on high-quality stocks in the banking or infrastructure sectors or any sizeable businesses showing solid fundamentals.  Have diversity in your investment portfolios to help hedge the risks of potential sector vulnerabilities or geopolitical uncertainties.