Stocks Slip on Profit Booking Amid Thin Year-End Trade

An end-of-day recap of all that transpired in the Indian markets, highlighting the major price movements and the factors driving them

By Dehuti Jani

December 26, 2025 at 11:53 AM IST

Indian equities eased on Friday as investors booked profits near record highs amid thin year-end participation and continued foreign selling. The Nifty50 fell 0.38% to 26,042.3, while the Sensex declined 0.43% to 85,041.45. The holiday-shortened week offered few fresh triggers, and selling pressure in IT and auto stocks, along with Sensex expiry, weighed on sentiment. Despite the pullback, benchmarks still managed modest weekly gains, with the Nifty and Sensex rising 0.3% and 0.1%, respectively, snapping a three-week losing streak.

Market breadth was weak, with the Nifty Midcap 100 down 0.23% and the Nifty SmallCap 100 lower by 0.08%. On the Sensex, Titan, NTPC and Hindustan Unilever led gains, while Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints and HCL Technologies dragged. On the NSE, Titan, Hindalco and Nestle India outperformed, while Asian Paints, Shriram Finance and Bajaj Finance lagged. Sectorally, Nifty IT was the top loser (-1.03%), followed by Auto (-0.52%), while Metals bucked the trend, rising 0.59%, as investors stayed cautious ahead of upcoming earnings cues.

Top Movers of the Day

Rail Vikas Nigam, RailTel, IRCON International, IRFC, Titagarh Rail Systems railway stocks led the session with gains of 5–10%, driven by revised passenger fare structures and rising optimism ahead of the Union Budget, making the rail theme the day’s dominant market narrative.

Panacea Biotec shares surged nearly 14% after the company said UNICEF enhanced the value of an existing order, sharply improving earnings visibility and sentiment.

Rico Auto Industries jumped 13% to a fresh 52-week high on heavy volumes, reflecting strong momentum in auto ancillaries amid expectations of sustained demand recovery.

Ola Electric Mobility rose as much as 5.4%, extending its rebound as investors responded positively to operational updates and easing near-term selling pressure.

Paras Defence gained up to 4% after announcing divestment of its stake in subsidiary Ayatti Innovative, a strategic move that refocused investor attention on core defence operations.

Karur Vysya Bank advanced 7% to a new high, continuing a strong three-month outperformance driven by improving asset quality and credit growth expectations.

NBCC rose 4.5% after signing an MoU with the Mumbai Port Authority, marking its entry into international real estate via a subsidiary.

Apollo Micro Systems added over 3% after securing UAV-related orders worth ₹100.24 crore, supporting growth prospects in defence electronics.

Lenskart Solutions gained nearly 4% following news of an acquisition in South Korea, signalling overseas expansion.

AVG Logistics jumped close to 8% after announcing a strategic MoU with Baidyanath LNG, strengthening its energy logistics footprint.

RMC Switchgears rose over 7% after applying to migrate from the BSE SME platform to the main board, improving visibility and liquidity prospects.

Indian Energy Exchange fell around 4% amid concerns that proposed regulatory changes to transaction fees could compress margins.

Eternal and Swiggy slipped up to 2% as gig-worker protests weighed on sentiment, though analysts expect limited long-term impact.

Futures & Options
Nifty December 2025 futures settled at 26,058, trading at a premium of 15.7 points to the Nifty 50’s cash close of 26,042.30, after the index slipped 99.80 points or 0.38% in the spot market. Market volatility eased, with the India VIX down 0.43% at 9.15. HDFC Bank, Infosys and Vedanta were the most active stock futures on the NSE, while December contracts are set to expire on 30 December 2025.

Bonds
Government bond yields were largely steady on Friday as traders stayed cautious ahead of the Centre’s final debt auction of 2025. The benchmark 10-year yield ended slightly higher at 6.5637%, compared with 6.5398% on Wednesday, reflecting mild pressure on prices. Meanwhile, the government raised ₹320 billion through the sale of three-year, seven-year and 30-year bonds in its first auction following the RBI’s large liquidity infusion, keeping yields range-bound amid balanced demand.

Forex
The rupee ended marginally weaker on Friday and logged a weekly loss, as persistent dollar demand from corporates and the non-deliverable forwards market offset gains driven by recent central bank intervention. The currency closed at 89.85 per dollar, slightly lower than 89.7850 in the previous session, and declined about 0.6% for the week, reversing part of last week’s more than 1% rise after the Reserve Bank of India stepped in to arrest the slide from record lows.

Crypto
Cryptocurrency markets extended gains for a second straight session, with total market capitalisation rising about 1% to nearly $3.07 trillion and 24-hour trading volumes at around $91.4 billion. Bitcoin climbed 1.4% to trade near $88,681, comfortably holding above the $88,000 mark after recent consolidation, while Ethereum advanced 1.3% to about $2,964, continuing its gradual recovery but still trading just below the key $3,000 psychological level.

US Stock Futures
US stock futures were largely flat as Wall Street entered the final stretch of the year, with the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures holding steady in early trade. Markets remain near record highs, encouraging caution amid thin holiday liquidity, when even small trades can drive sharp moves. Investors are largely on the sidelines awaiting clearer cues, though attention has turned to the possibility of a year-end “Santa Claus” rally as December draws to a close.

US Treasury Notes
US Treasury yields edged higher on Friday, with the benchmark 10-year note rising to around 4.15%, as investors digested resilient economic data and reassessed the outlook for future Federal Reserve rate cuts. Trading volumes remained light in the post-Christmas holiday period, limiting the extent of the move.

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