D-Street on the bench, auto boost pending F&O expiration

Mumbai: India’s stock benchmarks rose 0.6% on Monday as investors balanced optimism over lower US tariffs with fresh uncertainty over new tariff negotiations ahead. The Nifty closed at 25,713, up 141.75 points, while the BSE Sensex ended at 82,294.7, up 479.95 points. The US Supreme Court has declared Trump’s tariffs illegal. In response, Trump imposed new tariffs on all countries, starting at 10% and then increasing to 15%. This is lower than the rates agreed by New Delhi and Washington earlier this month, but analysts fear the lower rates will not last long.

“The 15% rates are limited to 150 days, and Trump will try to return to previous rates,” said Pankaj Pandey, Head of Retail Research at ICICI Securities. “For now, China appears to be the biggest beneficiary as it previously faced the highest interest rates, somewhat clouding the outlook for other economies including India.”

FPIs bought ₹3,483.7 crore worth of shares on Monday, while domestic institutions sold ₹1,292.24 crore. FPIs have purchased ₹17,426.3 crore so far in February. Across Asia, Hong Kong rose 2.5%, while South Korea and Taiwan gained 0.7% and 0.5% respectively. China and Japan were closed for holidays. In commodities, gold rose 0.9% and silver rose 2.8% to $86.9. At home, the Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Auto indices rose 1.4% and 0.8%, while the Nifty IT index fell 1.4%.

Technical analysts expect the decline to be limited to 25,500, but say broader participation is essential to maintain the increase.