Defence Deals, Vaccine Wins & IT Drag: Nifty Slips as Metals Hold Ground – Paper By Pocketful
Market Recap: 26th December, 2025
🗞 Stock News Highlights
Astra Micro Wave Products (+0.94%): The stock moved higher after the company announced a strategic MoU with Bharat Electronics Limited, improving growth visibility through joint development of advanced defence electronics, radar, EW and satellite systems.
HUDCO (+2.50%): The stock rose after management outlined strong growth expectations, targeting ₹1.5 lakh crore AUM and ₹50,000 crore disbursements by FY26-end, boosting confidence in the investors.
Panacea Biotec (+13.36%): The stock surged after UNICEF increased vaccine order volumes for 2026–27, improving revenue visibility, strengthening export prospects.
Indian Energy Exchange (-2.72%): The stock moved lower after Central Electricity Regulatory Commission rolled out a new virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) framework, sparking investor concerns over potential impacts on trading activity.
🏢 Sectoral Performance
Metal | NIFTY Metal (+0.59%): NIFTY Metal traded in positive territory, driven by gains in Hindustan Copper, Hindalco and NALCO, with select selling in Tata Steel and Jindal Steel trimming overall momentum.
PSE | Nifty PSE (+0.46%): Sector edged higher amid mixed sectoral cues, supported by gains in Rail Vikas Nigam, IRFC and IRCTC after new rail tariffs came into effect today, while losses in Power Grid, BEL and Oil India capped the upside amid selective profit-taking across PSU stocks.
IT | Nifty IT (-1.03%): Sector slipped on broad-based selling pressure, with all 10 constituents in the red as heavyweight drags from TCS, Infosys and Coforge kept the index under sustained pressure through the session.
Media | NIFTY Media(-0.62%): Sector saw downside pressure, led by heavyweights like PVR INOX, Zee Entertainment and Nazara, while Network18 and Tips Music provided only marginal relief.
🔍 Market Insights
Technical Level: Nifty opened on a soft note around 26,050 and faced sustained selling pressure through the morning, slipping steadily below 26,100. The index found intraday support near the 26,010–26,020 zone, where selling momentum tapered off. A modest afternoon rebound helped Nifty recover part of the losses, but the bounce lacked strength. It finally settled near 26,042, down about 0.38%, reflecting intraday weakness, muted participation, and a market still struggling to regain bullish conviction amid overhead supply.
Advance-Decline Ratio: The broader market showed negative breadth, as 1,285 stocks advanced while 1,867 declined and 97 unchanged, supporting overall market resilience.
The Big Picture: Oil clawed higher as traders stared into a supply nightmare. Venezuela’s barrels risk vanishing under tightening pressure, while fragile producers elsewhere threaten collapse. In thin holiday trade, prices crept up, haunted by fears that one geopolitical spark could rip through global energy flows.
FII/DII Activity (Dec 24, 2025): Strong domestic inflows of ₹2,531 crore by DIIs helped stabilise markets despite ₹1,993 crore net selling by FIIs.
🔮 Watch Out For Tomorrow
IPO Corner: E to E Transportation Infrastructure SME IPO opened on 26th December, with investors closely watching subscription levels and biddings will close on 30th December.
Macro: India’s Industrial Production Growth (YoY) & USA Crude Oil Inventories will be released on 29th December.
Index Watch: After a subdued session, Nifty traded in a narrow range and struggled to sustain moves above intraday highs, indicating consolidation. Market sentiment remains cautious, with focus on whether the index can resume its upward momentum or slip into a deeper corrective phase from current levels.
5 Day Course
Theme: Smart Risk Management in Markets
Day 4: Friday – Risk-Reward Ratio: Winning Even with Fewer Wins
The risk-reward ratio compares the potential loss of a trade to its potential gain. A favorable risk-reward ratio ensures that profits outweigh losses over time, even if not every trade is successful. For example, risking ₹1 to make ₹3 means a trader can be profitable with only a 40% win rate. Many losing traders focus on win percentage alone, ignoring risk-reward. By prioritizing trades with better payoff potential, traders improve long-term profitability and reduce dependency on frequent winning trades.
📝 Word Of The Day
Luxury Inertia- Once spending rises with income, habits harden, making it psychologically and practically difficult to cut expenses even when priorities change.
👀 Stay tuned. Stay diversified.
Until next time,
Team Pocketful.