This weekly stock market report shows Indian equity markets continued to be pressured in the week that ended on September 4, with benchmark indices extending their losses for a fourth consecutive week. Overall, the market remained in the red after four consecutive days of losses, though the Sensex and Nifty bounced back a little on Friday.

Key Highlights

• Top market indices Sensex and Nifty continue their fourth consecutive weekly losses, as markets remain volatile with cautious investor sentiment.
• Weekly Stock Market Report highlights pressure from global cues, crude oil prices and persistent volatility across Indian equities.

​The Nifty 50 ended Friday at 23,897.70, up 24.25 points or 0.10%, while the Sensex closed at 76,515.43, gaining 362.57 points or 0.48%. However, on a weekly basis the Nifty and Sensex fell 1.15% and 0.97% respectively, marking the steepest weekly declines for the two indices in five months.

Market Performance: Monday to Friday

The benchmarks fell 277.95 points on the Nifty and 749.08 points on the Sensex over the week. Mid-cap stocks also weakened, while small-cap stocks showed comparatively better resilience.

Monday: Markets Start September on a Weak Note

Indian stocks started off on a negative note on Monday as the new month began. The Nifty declined 95.25 points, or 0.39%, to 24,080.40, while the Sensex fell 307.24 points, or 0.40%, to 76,957.27. Investor sentiment was hurt by geopolitical tensions, foreign selling and crude price concerns as the market was cautious despite the unexpectedly strong domestic economic data.

Tuesday: Benchmarks End Nearly Flat

The Indian stock market remained calm on Tuesday but investors were still bearish. The Nifty slipped just 0.01% to 24,055.80, while the Sensex declined 12.99 points to 76,944.28. Performances were mixed across the sectors with some support from IT and FMCG stocks while banking, pharma, auto and realty stocks continued to be under pressure. Investors were still impacted by the price of crude oil trading above $91 a barrel.

Wednesday: Auto, IT Stocks Weigh on Market's Performance

Trading resumed Wednesday, buoyed by higher crude prices and geopolitical concerns, around the clock. The Nifty fell 141.35 points, or 0.59%, to 23,914.45, while the Sensex declined 373.90 points, or 0.49%, to 76,570.35.

The Nifty Auto index was heavily down with some big losses to Eicher Motors, Bajaj Auto and Mahindra & Mahindra. The IT stocks were also selling out while Coal India and Adani Ports and Power Grid were performing fairly well.

Thursday: Sensex Falls Over 400 Points

Oil prices continued to slide on Thursday despite a couple of dark clouds. The Nifty fell 41 points, or 0.17%, to 23,873.45, while the Sensex declined 417.49 points, or 0.55%, to 76,152.86. Some areas, like realty and PSU banks had some bright spots, while IT, FMCG and auto stocks were abysmal.

Friday: Markets Rebound but Weekly Losses Remain

Indian stocks rallied from four days of losses on Friday. The Nifty gained 24.25 points, or 0.10%, to close at 23,897.70, while the Sensex rose 362.57 points, or 0.48%, to 76,515.43. The recovery was bolstered by purchases of metals and capital-market stocks.

SBI Life Insurance tops the list of the top gainers with a 3.50% increase, followed by the top runners up Tata Steel, HDFC Life, Reliance Industries and Trent, with gains of 3.00%, 2.98%, 2.91% and 2.90% respectively. Bajaj Finserv and Max Healthcare, on the contrary, are the defaulters with HCL Technologies, Bharti Airtel and Maruti Suzuki.

SEBI's move for review of settlement price for derivatives trading also saw capital-market stocks rally with BSE, Angel One, Groww and Motilal Oswal among the gainers.

Sector Performance

Overall, the week was down across most sectors.

Auto Sector Under Pressure: The auto sector was one of the weakest sectors this week. Selling pressure led the auto index down some 4% during the week as concerns about sales growth and higher fuel prices weighed.

IT Stocks Stumble: IT stocks continued to suffer amid global macroeconomic uncertainty and interest-rate expectations. HCL Technologies tanked 1.94% to be the top Nifty loser of the day.

Metals Show Strength: Metals were a bright spot in the week, with metal stocks showing strength. Tata Steel was up 2.49% on Friday, helping the broader market rally.

Capital-Market Stocks Rally: Capital-market stocks added to the list of buying counters after SEBI reviewed the settlement pricing in derivatives.

Major Factors Driving the Market

Crude Oil Surge

This was the largest overhang for Indian stocks this week: crude oil. Brent crude edged up about 7% for the week on the back of the mounting tensions between Washington and Tehran over the United States. Indian import bill, inflation, corporate margins are concerned in the event of higher prices for oil.

US-Iran Geopolitical Tensions

Rising tensions between the US and Iran added to the murky waters of international financial markets, drawing investors into safer investments, driving up global bond yields and weighing on riskier emerging markets like India.

Strong Domestic Growth Statistics

A positive counterpoint to the market weakness was India's economy. India's real GDP increased by 7.8% YoY in Q1 FY27, beating the RBI forecast of 7% and real GVA rose by 8.2% YoY, with manufacturing and financial services driving this growth.

Foreign Investor Selling

Foreign fund outflows were an important worry for Indian stocks. The headline indices remained under the pressure of foreign selling and global risk aversion despite good domestic economic data and healthy domestic liquidity.

Also Read: Stock Market Weekly Report: Sensex and Nifty End Week Lower

Weekly Stock Market Outlook

The Indian stock market is heading into the upcoming week on a negative note. The weekly rebound is welcome news after four consecutive weekly declines, but the general tone is still down for the week.

Crude Oil prices, US-Iran tensions, global bond yields, foreign institutional flows and rupee are likely to be under the investor's microscope along with employment data from the US. The US jobs report could influence expectations around future Federal Reserve interest-rate decisions, and consequently impact global emerging-market flows.

The 23,850-23,900 area is going to be significant for the Nifty in the near future. A move above 24,000 may help to lift sentiment, whereas further selling below the recent lows may keep market sentiment under pressure.

Overall, the tone of the stock market weekly report is bearish, although with some volatility, as Friday's recovery provided relief. Oil price, geopolitical risks and foreign sales are the largest challenges in the near term, whilst domestic liquidity and economic growth in India are important underpinning factors.