Stock markets decline in early trade dragged by blue-chips Reliance, ICICI Bank

Market Overview - Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade, with Sensex down 320.69 points to 83,249.66 and Nifty down 124.60 points to 25,573.40, influenced by blue-chip stocks like Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank, along with foreign fund outflows and global tariff uncertainties [1] Company Performance - ICICI Bank's consolidated profit for the December quarter fell by 2.68% to ₹12,537.98 crore, impacted by a ₹1,283-crore provision for misclassified agricultural loans, with standalone profit also declining over 4% to ₹12,883 crore [2] - Reliance Industries reported a nearly flat net profit of ₹18,645 crore for the third quarter, as declines in gas production and retail business offset gains in other segments, leading to a drop of over 2% in its stock [3] Institutional Investment - Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth ₹4,346.13 crore, while domestic institutional investors purchased stocks worth ₹3,935.31 crore, indicating a mixed sentiment in the market [4] Global Market Influence - Asian markets showed mixed performance, with South Korea's Kospi and Shanghai's SSE Composite indices trading higher, while Japan's Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng indices were lower. U.S. markets ended marginally lower, influenced by President Trump's announcement of increased tariffs on several European nations [5] Commodity Prices - Brent crude oil prices increased by 0.16% to $64.23 per barrel, reflecting ongoing fluctuations in global oil markets [6]