Sensex and the Nifty 50 declined on Tuesday as investors stayed cautious after U.S. President Donald Trump's renewed threat of harsh tariffs on goods from India over the country's purchases of Russian oil and ahead of the local central bank policy decision.
Trump on Monday threatened to impose higher tariffs on goods imported from India, prompting New Delhi to call the move "unjustified" and pledge to safeguard its economic interests, further straining ties between the two nations.
Twelve of the 16 major sectors declined, with broader small-cap and mid-cap indexes down 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.
Yogesh Patil, CIO-equities at LIC Mutual Fund, told Reuters' Trading India forum that he expects U.S. trade uncertainty to keep Indian markets volatile in the short term, but is optimistic about their medium- to long-term prospects given strong domestic fundamentals.
Meanwhile, investors are waiting for the Reserve Bank of India's policy decision on Wednesday, in which it is expected to hold its key rate at 5.50%. However, calls for a rate cut have also risen after the U.S. slapped 25% tariffs on goods from India.
Reliance Industries, which is India's largest company by market value and earns the biggest chunk of its revenue from the oil-to-chemicals segment, dropped 1.4% on the day.
The drop was fuelled by concerns over the negative impact on the profitability of the firm's refineries due to the potential shift in crude oil sourcing from Russia.
State-owned oil refiners slipped on the day as well.
Also down were stocks exposed to the U.S. - pharma and information technology fell 0.8% and 0.5%, respectively.
Private lender IndusInd Bank rose 1.9% after naming industry veteran Rajiv Anand as CEO for a three-year term.
Exchange operator BSE dropped 4.8% after news reports said the finance ministry and the markets regulator are in talks to reduce speculation in the options market.
