Mumbai, Aug 7 (IANS) Domestic benchmark indices fell marginally on Thursday, weighed down by weakness in automobile, metal, and oil stocks. The latest threat of 50 per cent US tariffs on select Indian goods impacted the market amid mixed global cues.

Sensex declined 185 points, or 0.23 per cent to 80,358 while Nifty dipped 54 points or 0.22 per cent to 24,519.

In the Nifty pack, Hero MotoCorp led the gainers’ list, rising 1.27 per cent. followed by Cipla, Trent, Bajaj Finserv and HDFC Bank. Kotak Mahindra Bank, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Jio Financial, and State Bank of India were the major losers.

Among the sectoral indices, Nifty metal lost 0.54 per cent, Nifty Auto dipped 0.49 per cent, while Nifty Pharma gained 0.64 per cent.

US President Donald Trump has announced an additional 25 per cent tariffs on India, raising the total tariffs to 50 per cent, effective from August 27. He increased the tariffs, accusing India of “fuelling” Russia’s war machine through its imports of Russian crude oil.

“The 21-day window for the additional 25 per cent tariff to take effect leaves room for negotiation and an eventual deal with the US. But there is huge uncertainty surrounding the trade policy and to what extent both nations will be willing to make compromises,” said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd.

The market is unlikely to panic, but weakness will continue in the near term, during which export-oriented sectors will remain weak.

“Domestic consumption themes like banking and financials, telecom, hotels, cement and capital goods will remain resilient,” Vijayakumar added.

About half of India’s total exports to US, valued at $80 billion, are included in the exemption list, including pharmaceuticals and electronic goods.

US markets ended higher overnight, buoyed by gains in technology stocks. he While the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.21 per cent, the Dow Jones rose 0.18 per cent and the S&P 500 advanced 0.73 per cent.

Asian markets were mostly in the green zone. While Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced by 0.78 per cent, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.46 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index inched up by 0.17 per cent. The Chinese markets were in the red.

On Wednesday, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) net sold Rs 4,999 crore worth of Indian equities, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought Rs 6,794 crore worth of shares.

—IANS

aar/na