Nifty slips 0.17% as bank gains cushion IT and consumer weakness

Indian equities ended marginally lower after a positive opening, as gains in lenders and infrastructure stocks were not enough to offset selling in technology and consumer-facing shares. The market's response was more about sector rotation than a broad change in risk appetite.

The main domestic catalyst was the Reserve Bank of India's disclosure that banks mobilised $127.23 billion through FCNR(B) deposits by August 31. Including overseas foreign-currency borrowings and external commercial borrowings, total inflows reached $136.377 billion. The special FCNR(B) window was closed a month ahead of schedule after the RBI said its objective had been achieved.

Banks were among the principal supports for the benchmarks. Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India were cited among the leading gainers, while RBL Bank rose strongly after its board said it would consider an enhanced medium-term note programme for foreign-currency borrowing. Adani Ports also outperformed after reporting record August cargo volumes, according to market reports.

The banking response reflects the market's interpretation of the RBI data: the inflows improve foreign-exchange liquidity and could support funding conditions. Analysts also said the mobilisation may help stabilise the rupee and improve sentiment towards financial stocks. Those are market interpretations, not a new RBI assessment of bank profitability.

Infrastructure and industrial shares benefited from company-specific order news, including Power Grid's Rs 3,244 crore-a-year HVDC transmission project bid win and Inox Wind's approximately Rs 755 crore 100 MW turnkey order from Indian Oil. These announcements provided an identifiable reason for strength in the infrastructure complex.

IT shares remained under pressure as elevated US Treasury yields kept attention on valuation-sensitive growth stocks. Tech Mahindra and HCL Technologies were among the reported laggards. Consumer shares also weakened; market reports attributed pressure on Godrej Consumer Products to palm-oil inflation and execution concerns, while Titan was among the stocks weighing on the consumer complex.

The RBI's foreign-currency mobilisation is the clearest policy-related development affecting markets. The central bank said FCNR(B) deposits accounted for $127.23 billion of inflows, while the combined total under the special measures was $136.377 billion. The immediate market implication was stronger support for banks and the rupee, although the longer-term effect will depend on how the liquidity is absorbed and how the swaps mature.

The Reserve Bank's deputy governor S C Murmu separately said securitisation should develop beyond a liquidity-management tool into a mechanism for genuine risk transfer and capital release. He also urged non-bank finance companies and housing finance companies to diversify funding sources, against the vulnerabilities exposed by earlier liquidity shocks.

Sebi approved Zerodha's merchant-banking licence. The brokerage said it plans to begin operations over the next couple of months. No fresh CPI, IIP, GST, trade or PMI release with a direct market impact was confirmed in the available material for the session.

Global cues were mildly supportive at the open. US equities had recovered from a three-session decline, while Asian markets advanced as oil's recent rally paused. The relief was limited because Brent remained near $95 a barrel and the US 10-year Treasury yield remained close to 4.8%, keeping inflation and interest-rate risks in focus.

The market was also monitoring renewed US-Iran tensions. Reports said President Donald Trump played down the prospect of a prolonged conflict, helping crude retreat from its recent rise. For India, sustained oil prices remain relevant because they affect the import bill, inflation expectations and the rupee.

Foreign institutional investors bought Rs 6,688.37 crore of Indian equities on September 2, while domestic institutions bought Rs 2,812.98 crore. The combined buying took place even as the market fell in the previous session, suggesting that institutional flows were supportive but not sufficient on their own to prevent sector-specific selling.

The corporate news flow was concentrated in orders, ownership changes and management. Power Grid disclosed the HVDC project bid win, while Inox Wind said its Indian Oil order includes turbine supply, engineering, procurement and construction, project execution and post-commissioning operations and maintenance.

Hexaware Technologies named Vivek Jetley as CEO-designate, with the transition scheduled for October 28, 2026. Market reports said the outgoing chief executive's exit raised concerns about the company's growth outlook. Ujjivan Small Finance Bank appointed Carol Furtado as interim managing director and chief executive officer after Sanjeev Nautiyal resigned for health reasons; the bank reaffirmed its FY27 guidance.

Technocraft Ventures reported first-quarter net profit of Rs 10.7 crore, compared with Rs 9.3 crore a year earlier. Revenue was Rs 92.7 crore, against Rs 90.7 crore in the year-ago quarter, while EBITDA rose to Rs 18 crore from Rs 15.6 crore and the EBITDA margin increased to 19.4% from 17.2%. No street consensus was available in the material, so the result can be compared with the year-ago quarter but not with an analyst estimate.

Primary-market activity remained active. Lumino Industries began trading after receiving bids for 117.78 times the shares on offer and opened at a premium to its Rs 82 issue price. Rays of Belief's Rs 125 crore issue closed on September 3, while its proposed listing is scheduled for September 8.

Block-deal activity included a Rs 549.92 crore transaction in Pine Labs, a Rs 12,067 crore acquisition of a 24% stake in Altius Telecom Infrastructure Trust by CDPQ, and a separate Rs 199.31 crore transaction in Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions. These transactions provide liquidity and ownership-change signals, but their final effect on the broader market was not available.