Weekly Market Round-up July 21-25, 2025

Weekly Market Report: July 21–July 25, 2025

Summary of major financial market movements for the week. This overview covers Nifty & Sensex, mutual funds, currency markets, oil, gold, and global markets.

Indian Stock Indices (Nifty & Sensex)

Both the Nifty 50 and Sensex began the week strong but gradually lost ground. While Monday saw optimism, the momentum faded due to disappointing earnings from major companies like Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv, as well as global market weakness. By Friday, almost all sectors ended lower, except for select pharma stocks.

• Nifty 50:
  • Opened July 21 at 25,090, up 0.49%
  • Closed July 25 at 24,837, down 0.9% for the day, and about 1% lower for the week
• Sensex:
  • Began at 82,200, up 0.54%
  • Ended at 81,463 on July 25, down 721 points for the week
• Sectors such as IT, auto, metals, and financials saw notable declines
• Mid-cap indices dropped 1.6%; Small-cap indices were down 2.1% by Friday

Mutual Funds

Mutual funds reflected the market’s volatility:

• Performance: Equity mutual funds saw mixed returns this week, tracking the overall weakness in stock indices.
• Flows: SIP (Systematic Investment Plan) collections continued at robust levels with ₹27,269 crore in June, showing persistent retail investor interest.
• Trends: There was a noticeable slowdown in new fund launches compared to last year due to market uncertainty. Schemes focused on infrastructure, flexi-cap, and mid-cap sectors remained popular.
• Best performing themes: Small Cap and Hybrid funds delivered healthy 5-year CAGRs, even though this week’s returns were subdued amid the correction

Currency Markets

The rupee stayed under pressure against the dollar throughout the week:

• Move: The rupee weakened slightly (by about 0.3%) against the US dollar during the week.
• Drivers: A strong dollar and ongoing global uncertainty fueled the movement

Oil Markets

• WTI Crude: Traded around $66.2/barrel at the start of the week; slipped to about $65.1 by July 25, showing a slight decline
• Brent Crude: Traded about $68.98/barrel on July 21
• Key factors: Concerns about global trade tensions and OPEC supply adjustments weighed on prices. Ultimately, oil prices fell nearly 1.5% over the week, influenced by the threat of tariffs and an uncertain economic outlook.

Gold

Gold continued to attract demand as a safe-haven asset: from ₹98,700 it ended at ₹99,330 at the end of the week.

• Gold prices rose modestly in rupee terms, mirroring global trends and slight dollar softness.
• Investors kept buying gold to hedge against uncertainty, and by Friday, gold was nearly flat versus earlier in the week but remained near recent highs

International Markets

• US: The S&P 500 climbed to new all-time highs through the week, gaining 5% for July. Earnings optimism offset trade tensions
• Europe: European stocks (FTSE, DAX, CAC) fell marginally in response to global economic concerns and central bank caution.
• Asia: Hang Seng (Hong Kong) posted strong gains for the year and remained resilient last week. Shanghai and Japanese Nikkei traded mixed, with the Nikkei slightly down.

Key Takeaways

• Indian stocks: Weakness emerged mid-week, erasing early gains.
• Mutual funds: Saw resilient domestic flows even if near-term equity performance lagged.
• Currency market: The rupee was steady to weak against the US dollar.
• Oil: Prices slid about 1–1.5% amid global uncertainty.
• Gold: Remained attractive for risk-averse investors.
• Global context: US stocks continued to rise, while European and some Asian markets experienced brief corrections.