Sensex falls 174 pts, Nifty below 25,250 amid China tariff woes

The Indian equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, closed lower on Monday, weighed down by IT stocks as renewed U.S.-China trade tensions dampened investor sentiment. The decline came after President Donald Trump intensified tariff threats following Beijing’s move to tighten curbs on rare earth exports.At close, the Sensex was down 173.77 points or 0.21 percent at 82,327.05, and the Nifty was down 58 points or 0.23 percent at 25,227.35. BSE Midcap index was down 0.2 percent and smallcap indices shed 0.4 percent.
Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Auto, Adani Ports, Shriram Finance and Bajaj Finance were the top gainers on the Nifty while losers included Tata Motors, Infosys, Wipro, Nestle, HUL.On the sectoral front,metal, telecom, IT, FMCG, capital goods, consumer durables slipped between 0.5-1%.
Rupee Close: 
On 13 Oct'25,the Indian rupee appreciated 5 paise to close at 88.67 against the US dollar on Monday, supported by suspected RBI intervention and fresh foreign fund inflows.Forex traders said the domestic unit faced some resistance as renewed trade war tensions between the US and China led to risk aversion in global markets.
Trading Guide:
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments stated,the domestic markets started the week on a cautious note as the ongoing U.S. government shutdown and escalating U.S.-China trade tensions triggered risk-off sentiment across Asia.Profit booking in consumption and discretionary sectors after recent rallies indicated a tactical shift in investor positioning. Mixed Q2 earnings further weighed on sentiment, with IT stocks underperforming, while financials attracted selective buying following regulatory easing.Mid and small cap stocks maintained a positive undertone. Although a marginal recovery in the INR and softening inflation expectations helped cushion losses, overall sentiment remained guarded, keeping markets under a slight negative bias.
Market experts recommended five stocks to buy on Monday- Manorama Industries, Asahi India Glass, Bajaj Consumer Care, Borosil Renewables, and Le Travenues Technology.

(Business Correspondent)