Markets Open Slightly Lower Ahead Of Union Budget 2026, Metal Stocks Crash As Investors Stay Cautious

Mumbai: Indian stock markets opened slightly lower on Sunday, February 1, as investors remained cautious ahead of the Union Budget 2026–27 presentation. Trading was weak mainly due to heavy selling in metal stocks. Investors are closely watching the budget speech by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, which is expected to give direction to the markets.

At 9:17 am, the BSE SENSEX was down 83 points, or 0.1%, at 82,186, while the NIFTY50 slipped 42 points, or 0.17%, to 25,278.

The broader market also showed weakness. The Nifty Midcap 100 fell 0.7%, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 dropped 1.25%, showing selling pressure in smaller stocks.

Focus on Budget and Economic Outlook

The Union Budget is being presented at a time of global trade tensions, geopolitical uncertainty, and rising pressure to maintain India’s growth while controlling the fiscal deficit. The Economic Survey has projected India’s GDP growth between 6.8% and 7.2% for the financial year 2026–27.

Investors are hoping for policy clarity on taxes, spending, and reforms that can support long-term growth.

Metal Stocks See Heavy Selling

Among all sectors, Nifty Metal was the worst performer, falling sharply by 4.32%. This dragged the overall market lower. Stocks like Hindalco and Tata Steel saw strong selling.

Other sectors that declined were Nifty PSU Bank (-1.46%), Nifty IT (-0.75%), Nifty Realty (-0.71%), and Nifty Media (-0.57%).

On the positive side, only two sectors managed gains. Nifty Pharma rose 0.36% and Nifty Private Bank gained 0.24%.

FII and DII Activity

On Friday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth ₹2,251 crore. However, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold shares worth ₹601 crore on a net basis, showing mixed investment sentiment.

Global Cues Remain Weak

Global markets also gave weak signals. On Wall Street, US markets ended sharply lower on Friday. This came after President Donald Trump nominated former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh as a possible successor to Jerome Powell. Investors saw this as a strict policy move.

The S&P 500 fell 0.43%, the Dow Jones dropped 0.36%, and the Nasdaq declined 0.94%.

Market Breadth and Volatility

Out of 2,573 stocks traded on the NSE, 1,425 declined, while only 1,050 advanced. This shows negative market breadth.

India VIX, which measures market fear, rose 3.88% to 14.16, showing higher uncertainty.

Top Gainers and Losers

On NIFTY50, Hindalco was the biggest loser, falling 6.92%, followed by Tata Steel, Infosys, Adani Enterprises, and Coal India.

Top gainers were Sun Pharma, Bajaj Auto, Bharat Electronics, Power Grid, and Axis Bank.