DayStarter

Market snapshot

Equities and sectors

Indian equities closed lower on 29 June, ahead of the monthly F&O expiry. The Nifty 50 closed at 23,946.25, down 0.46% from the previous close of 24,056.00. The Sensex closed at 76,728.37, down 0.48% from 77,100.47.

The Nifty opened almost flat at 24,062 and moved toward 24,100 in the first hour. It then slipped below 24,000 around noon and touched the day’s low near the 23,930 zone around 12:30 PM. Through the afternoon, it traded in a narrow 23,940-23,980 range before closing at 23,946.25.

Nifty Bank also closed lower at 57,727.35, down 0.77% from the previous close of 58,177.05.

Broader markets were weak as well. Nifty Next 50 fell 0.95% to 71,510.30. Nifty Midcap 150 fell 0.31% to 22,679.65. Nifty Smallcap 250 fell 0.48% to 17,619.60. Nifty Microcap 250 fell 0.28% to 24,886.60.

Sectoral indices

Pharma, Metal, and Energy were the only sectoral indices in the green. Auto was the weakest sector, followed by Media and IT.

F&O movers

Among F&O stocks, National Aluminium, Vedanta, KEI, Torrent Pharma, and NHPC were the top gainers. Persistent Systems was the biggest loser after announcing its Nagarro acquisition plan. Astral also fell sharply after announcing the demerger of its chemicals business.

Commodities and currency

Gold and silver closed lower on MCX. Crude oil rose 1.09%, while natural gas fell 0.89%. Base metals were mostly higher, with aluminium, copper, and zinc closing in the green.

USDINR was quoted at 94.79, up 0.10% from the previous level of 94.70. The rupee settled at 94.51, down 6 paise.

India’s 10-year bond yield was 6.75, down 0.28% from 6.77. The US 10-year yield was 4.37, down 0.46% from 4.41.

Institutional flows

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers over the five reported sessions, with total net buying of ₹2,782 crore. Domestic institutional investors bought more heavily, with total net buying of ₹9,941 crore.

Macro view

Industrial production

India’s industrial output, measured by the Index of Industrial Production, grew 5.1% year-on-year in May. Growth improved from 4.9% in April and 3.4% in May 2025. The IIP stood at 122.7 in May 2026, compared with 116.7 a year earlier.

Manufacturing, which has the largest weight in IIP at 76.062%, grew 5.5% year-on-year. This was slower than the 6.1% growth recorded in April. Electricity and gas supply rose 9.9%, while mining and quarrying contracted 1.6%.

Within manufacturing, 16 of 23 groups recorded positive growth. The main contributors were basic metals, which grew 4.6%; motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers, which grew 14.5%; and electrical equipment, which grew 20.8%.

Other parts of industrial output also grew:

This was the second month in FY27 using the new IIP series with 2022-23 as the base year. MoSPI adopted the output producer price index as the deflator for value-measured items, instead of the wholesale price index. A deflator is used to remove the effect of price changes so that output growth reflects real production more clearly. MoSPI also re-released the 2022-23 base series using PPI, replacing the WPI-based data released on 1 June.

Mint, Economy & Policy; Zerodha AfterMarket Report; Mint, Quick Edit

Wholesale inflation and trade

India’s wholesale price inflation was 9.68% in May. This was described as the highest level in 42 months. WPI tracks wholesale prices, so a high reading can show rising input costs for businesses before the full effect reaches consumers.

The pressure was especially strong in energy-linked items. Fuel and power inflation was 30.33%. Crude petroleum and natural gas inflation was 61.51%. Mineral oils inflation was 49.82%.

Merchandise exports grew 17.99% year-on-year in May, faster than the 13.8% growth in April. Manufacturing PMI rose to 55. A PMI reading above 50 means activity is expanding.

The rupee depreciated 2.04% against the US dollar in May. Import cover was just over 10 months. India topped Mint’s Emerging Markets Tracker in May with a composite score of 68.05.

India Ratings expects WPI to reduce to around 9.3% in June. Icra also expects lower crude prices to soften WPI. Both expect the adjustment to happen gradually.

Mint, Plain Facts

Policy and fiscal developments

Several policy and fiscal developments were reported:

Monsoon and agriculture

Indian farmers have fallen behind in planting summer crops such as rice, cotton, corn, and soybeans. The reason was a slow start to the monsoon, which left rainfall below average so far. India accounts for about 40% of global rice shipments, so the pace of planting is important for both domestic food supply and global rice trade.

Mint, Mint Shorts; Reuters

Corporate action and earnings

Domestic headlines

Persistent Systems shares fell as much as 11% to a 52-week low of ₹4,265 after the company decided to acquire Munich-based Nagarro SE. Mint reported the enterprise value at €1.27 billion. Zerodha cited a €1.1 billion takeover of Frankfurt-listed Nagarro. Persistent has already bought a 21% stake and plans to acquire 100% through an open offer. The all-cash deal includes net debt of about €268 million and will be funded through a bridge loan. The company expects the deal to add to EPS from the first year, excluding transaction costs. Completion is expected in Q4 CY26 or Q1 CY27.

Astral Ltd fell 8% to ₹1,368 after it said it will separate its chemicals business into a separately listed company called Astral Chemie. Astral will become a pure-play plumbing and building materials company. Shareholders will receive one Astral Chemie share for every Astral share. Plumbing contributed 71% of FY26 revenue and 83% of Ebitda.

Kotak Mahindra Bank shares fell nearly 3% after MD and CEO Ashok Vaswani said he would not seek reappointment. He will step down when his term ends in December.

Axis Bank CFO Puneet Sharma resigned and will step down on 31 August. Bandhan Bank CFO Rajeev Mantri also resigned and will continue until 25 September.

HDFC Bank’s board approved the appointment of Rajiv Kumar as part-time chairman and additional independent director. Rajiv Kumar is a former Chief Election Commissioner and former financial services secretary. The appointment came three days after an external legal review cleared the bank in the controversy around former chairman Atanu Chakraborty’s exit.

REC Ltd’s merger with parent Power Finance Corp. received board approval. The share-swap ratio is 88 PFC shares for every 100 REC shares. PFC closed 1.7% lower at ₹425.50, while REC closed 0.1% higher at ₹365. In FY26, PFC and REC had domestic bond borrowings of ₹2.75 trillion and ₹2.77 trillion, respectively.

BPCL will acquire a 40% stake in Tiki Tar and Shell India for ₹85 crore. The deal is in the value-added bitumen market and is expected to be completed within 90 days.

Hexaware Technologies shares rose more than 4.5% after the company was named an Anthropic Authorized Reseller for Amazon Bedrock. This allows Hexaware to resell Claude.

Yes Bank plans to raise up to ₹16,000 crore. This includes up to ₹7,500 crore through equity and up to ₹8,500 crore through debt.

Bajaj Auto’s ₹5,632.8 crore share buyback will open on 1 July. The buyback covers 46.94 lakh shares at ₹12,000 each.

ESDS Software Solutions is preparing a ₹720 crore IPO. If listed, it would become India’s first listed data centre owner-operator.

Hindustan Zinc plans to add at least three new metals over five years: rare earths, potash, and tungsten.

India’s residential sales fell to 90,715 units in April-June. This was the lowest level since January 2023. Sales were down 6% year-on-year and 11% quarter-on-quarter. FY26 sales of 4.04 lakh units were the weakest since FY23.

Mint, Mark to Market; Mint, Corporate; Mint, Deals; Mint, front page; Zerodha AfterMarket Report

Upcoming economic events

Upcoming corporate actions

Global pulse

Global indices

US and Asian technology-linked indices were stronger, while the Dow Jones and FTSE 100 were softer.

International headlines

Crude oil recovered to around $70 per barrel after the US and Iran agreed to halt mutual attacks before peace talks. Prices were also helped by supply concerns after a supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Qatari oil was struck near the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump said a meeting with Iran would happen in Doha on Tuesday, but a senior Iranian negotiator denied that any talks had been scheduled.

The 10-year US Treasury yield fell below 4.38%, its lowest level since early May. Lower oil and fuel prices reduced inflation concerns.

South Korea announced an industrial strategy of more than $576 billion focused on semiconductors and artificial intelligence, with President Lee Jae-myung.

British American Tobacco will cut 5,500 jobs globally as part of its “Fit2Win” programme.

The Japanese yen traded almost unchanged at around 161.7 per dollar. It remained close to its weakest level since 1986, even after stronger-than-expected retail sales data.

Global shipping freight rates are likely to stay high for the next few months after restrictions through the Strait of Hormuz eased. As of 25 June, the freight rate for a 40-ft container was $4,166 on the Drewry World Container Index. This compares with $1,899 on 26 February 2026. The Baltic Dry Index remains about 19% above its pre-war level.

Twin earthquakes in Venezuela, with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, had a reported death toll of at least 1,450. The UN estimated physical damage of $6.7 billion.

Pakistani ground operations and strikes killed at least 36 civilians in Afghanistan, with more than 160 wounded. Afghan officials reported the casualties. Pakistan said the operations were in response to militant attacks.

Zerodha AfterMarket Report; Mint, Global; Mint, front page; Mint, Corporate; Mint, News Wrap

Management chatter

Verbatim pull-quotes from named speakers, as published.

Sudarshan Venu on R&D, EVs, and the FY27 outlook

Zerodha AfterMarket Report, Management Chatter

Nandan Nilekani on AI and IT services

Zerodha AfterMarket Report, Management Chatter

Manohar Lal Khattar, quote of the day

Mint, Quote of the Day

Tuesday feature: Demergers explained

What demergers are and why companies use them

A demerger is a form of corporate restructuring. In a demerger, a company separates one or more business units into independent entities. The original company continues with its remaining businesses, and shareholders of the original company usually receive shares in the new entity in proportion to their existing holding.

Groww; Goodwill Wealth Management blog

In India, demergers are governed by Sections 230-232 of the Companies Act, 2013. For tax purposes, they are also governed by Section 2(19AA) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Listed companies must also follow SEBI requirements, and the process requires approval from the National Company Law Tribunal.

Goodwill Wealth Management blog; Ahlawat & Associates; chhotaCFO

A demerger is different from other corporate actions:

Why companies demerge businesses

Companies usually demerge businesses for a few common reasons.

• Unlocking shareholder value and reducing the conglomerate discount: When one company operates in many unrelated industries, the market may not fully value each business separately. A demerger allows investors to value each business on its own merits, which can lead to higher combined valuations.
• Sharper strategic focus: Each company gets its own management team, capital allocation plan, and strategy. This can reduce conflicts between different divisions.
• Independent access to capital and investor choice: A separately listed company can raise capital on its own. It can also appeal to investors who want exposure to a specific sector. Growth-focused investors may prefer high-expansion businesses, while conservative investors may prefer stable cash-generating businesses.
• Tax efficiency: A demerger that meets Section 2(19AA) conditions is generally tax-neutral. This means there is usually no immediate capital gains tax for the company or shareholders when new shares are received. Tax may arise later when shares are sold.

Business Standard; Motilal Oswal; Groww; Bajaj Finserv; LawCrust; chhotaCFO; DUCTUS EDGE; Goodwill Wealth Management blog

Published material also points out risks and trade-offs. Newly listed entities may see short-term price volatility. The group may lose some synergies. Execution can be difficult. Integration and separation costs can be high. The process also involves administrative and regulatory expenses.

Motilal Oswal; Groww; Bajaj Finserv

Worked example: Vedanta’s demerger

Vedanta Ltd is described by the company as a diversified natural-resources group with businesses in oil and gas, zinc-lead-silver, copper, iron ore, aluminium, and commercial power. It pursued one of the largest restructurings in India’s metals and mining sector. The demerger was first announced in September 2023.

Vedanta press release, 16 December 2025; Business Today; Univest

On 16 December 2025, the Mumbai Bench of the NCLT approved Vedanta’s Scheme of Arrangement for the demerger into independent, pure-play businesses. Vedanta said the approval would create five separate listed companies, including the already listed Vedanta Ltd. Each company would have a clear strategic mandate, focused management team, and dedicated capital structure.

Vedanta press release, 16 December 2025; MarketScreener

Vedanta’s release said the resulting structure would include four newly listed companies: Vedanta Aluminium, Vedanta Oil & Gas, Vedanta Power, and Vedanta Iron & Steel. Vedanta Ltd would continue as the parent company, housing Hindustan Zinc Ltd and incubating future-facing businesses.

Reporting on the underlying entities named them as Vedanta Aluminium Metal Limited, or VAML; Vedanta Power, meaning Talwandi Sabo Power, to be renamed; Vedanta Oil & Gas, meaning Malco Energy, to be renamed; and Vedanta Iron and Steel Limited, or VISL. The company said approval for the demerger of the merchant power business was still pending separately before the NCLT at that date.

Vedanta said shareholders would receive equity shares in each of the four resulting listed companies, in addition to their existing Vedanta Ltd shares, in proportion to their existing holdings. Later reporting described this as a 1:1 entitlement. For every one Vedanta share held on the record date, a shareholder received one share in each of the four new companies while keeping the original Vedanta share. The record date was 1 May 2026.

Vedanta press release, 16 December 2025; Paytm Money; Univest; IndMoney

Vedanta said the demerger was meant to unlock long-term value for shareholders and give investors direct exposure to sector-leading assets. Chairman Anil Agarwal called the NCLT approval “a landmark moment in Vedanta’s journey.”

Independent reporting described the main idea as removing a “conglomerate discount”. Before the split, the market was seen as valuing Vedanta mainly on its Hindustan Zinc stake, while giving limited credit to its aluminium, oil and gas, power, and steel businesses.

Vedanta press release, 16 December 2025; Univest; Liquide

The four demerged companies listed on the BSE and NSE on 15 June 2026, initially in the Trade-to-Trade segment. Market reaction was mixed on debut. Vedanta Aluminium Metal listed at a premium to its reference price, while the other three companies listed below their reference prices.

The same reporting noted that demergers are often presented as value-unlocking events, but the final result depends on how the market values each standalone business.

Goodreturns; IndMoney; sahi.com

How demergers connect to today’s news

Demergers appear directly in today’s market sources. Astral Ltd announced that it will hive off its chemicals business into a separately listed company called Astral Chemie, on a one-share-for-one-share basis.

Vedanta Ltd was among the F&O top gainers on 29 June, up 4.22%.

Gujarat Gas Ltd has a “Spin Off” corporate action with an ex-date of 2 July.

Mint, Mark to Market; Zerodha AfterMarket Report

Feature sources

• Vedanta Limited, official press release, “Vedanta Receives NCLT Approval for Demerger into Independent, Pure-play Companies,” 16 December 2025, vedantaresources.com; reproduced on MarketScreener and Business News This Week.
• Business Today, “Vedanta demerger: These will be 4 new listed entities,” 21 April 2026.
• Univest, “Vedanta Demerger: 4 Entities List Today June 15,” June 2026.
• Goodreturns, Vedanta demerger listing day report, 15 June 2026.
• IndMoney, “Vedanta Demerged Companies Listed: What It Means for Investors,” June 2026.
• Paytm Money, “Vedanta Demerger Explained: Record Date, Price Discovery and Timeline,” 28 April 2026.
• Liquide, “Vedanta Demerger 2026: Share Price Adjustment, Record Date & Ratio Explained,” 7 May 2026.
• Business Standard, “Unlocking shareholder value through demergers, boosting profitability,” 28 August 2024.
• Motilal Oswal Learning Centre, “Demergers: How Splitting Can Multiply Value.”
• Groww, “Stock Demerger Explained: Process, Types & Investor Impact.”
• Goodwill Wealth Management, gwcindia.in blog, “What Is a Stock Demerger?” 21 February 2026.
• chhotaCFO, “What is a Demerger? Meaning, Types & Examples,” 2 December 2025.
• Ahlawat & Associates, “Strategic Demergers: Unlocking value in conglomerates.”
• LawCrust, “Demerger in India: Process, Types & Legal Procedure.”
• DUCTUS EDGE, mehtadixit.com, “What is Demerger? Insights on Why Companies Opt for Demerger,” 1 December 2025.

Closing

Primary sources: Zerodha AfterMarket Report, 29 June 2026 close; Mint, Mumbai edition, 30 June 2026. The Tuesday feature is sourced from named public sources, fully credited within the feature section, with the lead source being Vedanta Ltd’s official press release of 16 December 2025. This briefing is a fact-based aggregation of the sources named above. Not investment advice.