14 August, 2025: Eventful Week Closes on Flat Terms

Thursday, August 14, 2025, saw the Indian stock market have a majorly range-bound session based on caution due to the Independence Day holiday and weekly derivative expiry. The major indices—Nifty 50 and Sensex, both posted marginal gains, technically ending a six-week losing streak despite volatility during intraday.

Benchmark Indices Performance

NSE Nifty 50 finished at 24,631.30, higher only by 11.95 points or 0.01%. The index moved in a narrow range as the traders avoided making a big move, keeping their fingers crossed for the long weekend. The levels of resistance continued around the 24,700–24,750 zone, while the support was on the downside at 24,200. The 200-day moving average is around 24,000, which acted as a key technical support.

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BSE Sensex closed 57.75 points higher at 80,597.66, showing a narrow 261-point trading range in the session. In the last month, the index has fallen 2.38% but is marginally positive year-on-year. The Sensex had a high of 80,751.18 and a low of 80,489.86 before closing marginally above 80,600.

Sectoral Trends and Notable Movers

• Advances were driven by choice IT, FMCG, and heavyweight financials, with Wipro (+2%), Infosys (+1.5%), and HDFC Life (+1.47%) being among leading gainers.
• Conversely, metals, oil & gas, and realty segments lagged behind. Tata Steel (-2.81%), Adani Ports (-1.38%), and Hero MotoCorp (-1.27%) led the decliners.
• The larger market also saw mixed action with mid-cap and small-cap indices trailing, due in part to high valuations and institution switch to quality large caps.
• Market Breadth and Participation: Out of almost 4,000 BSE-listed stocks, only 1,723 rose while 2,090 fell, indicating negative breadth and selective buying.
• Foreign portfolio investors (FPI) seem to have continued selling, following yesterday's selling ₹3,644 crores worth of shares, while domestic institutional investors (DII) seem to continue to be net buyers, buying ₹5,624crore and maintaining their buying spree.

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Global and Domestic Factors

• US markets continued their rally, as the Dow Jones rose 1% and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed at new highs on the strength of hopes for a Fed rate cut.
• Fresh US tariffs and the Trump-Putin summit, ahead, kept market participants anxious, injecting global uncertainty into risk premiums.
• S&P Global upgraded India's sovereign rating to BBB, underpinning sentiment.
• Q1 results season recorded its close, with company-specific news powering sharp moves; Ashok Leyland shares surged 2% after the results.

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Outlook

Current muted steps indicate a wary setting with few immediate catalysts but scope for post-holiday movement as global and local indicators continue to develop. Investors are encouraged to watch sector rotations, earnings results, and value differentials between mid/small caps and large caps while the market looks for new direction next week.

On balance, August 14, 2025, indicated guarded optimism in Indian equities with flat closing, selective sectoral movement, and global influences guiding near-term perspective.