Rate sensitive shares trade mixed; PSU Bank index down 2% post RBI policy

At 10:45 AM; the Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Realty and Nifty Auto index were down in the range of 0.67 per cent and 2 per cent, as compared to 0.60 per cent decline in the benchmark Nifty 50.

Share price of rate sensitive sectors such as financials including banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), automobiles and real estate were trading on a mixed note after the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Friday kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent with 'Neutral' stance.

 

At 10:45 AM; Nifty Financial Services was down 0.47 per cent, while the Nifty Private Bank index was down 0.18 per cent.  Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Realty and Nifty Auto index were down in the range of 0.67 per cent and 2 per cent, as compared to 0.60 per cent decline in the benchmark Nifty 50. Most of these sectors had outperformed the market after the US-India trade deal announcement.

 

Among individual stocks, Uno Minda, Samvardhana Motherson International, Tube Investments of India, Exide Industries and Sona BLW Precision Forgings from the Nifty Auto index, and Oberoi Realty, Godrej Properties, Lodha Developers, DLF and Anant Raj from Nifty Realty index were down in the range of 2 per cent to 5 per cent.

 

State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, Canara Bank, Indian Bank and Bank of India from Nifty PSU Bank index were down in the range of 1 per cent to 2 per cent.

 

HDFC Bank, Muthoot Finance, REC and Shriram Finance from the financial sector index dipped between 1 per cent and 2 per cent. However, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank gained up to 1 per cent each. 

 

The RBI today maintained its key repo rate at 5.25 per cent during its February 2026 meeting, the first monetary policy decision of the year, after cutting it by 25 bps at the December meeting, in line with forecasts, amid confidence in a softer inflation outlook and improving growth prospects.

 

The decision comes after the Union Budget boosted government spending and the US–India trade deal raised expectations of stronger economic growth. On the economic outlook, the RBI raised its GDP growth forecast for FY2025/26 to 7.4 per cent, up from its earlier estimate of 7.3 per cent. GDP growth for the first half of FY27 was also revised upward, with growth projected at 6.9 per cent in Q1 and 7.0 per cent in Q2, said Jigar Trivedi, Senior Research Analyst at Indusind Securities.

 

"RBI’s monetary policy came exactly on expected lines with no change in rates, and stance kept unchanged at neutral. The Governor refrained from giving FY27 forecasts of GDP growth and CPI inflation since revision of the base rates in both are due shortly. The Governor sounded optimistic about the growth prospects in FY27 since “high frequency indicators suggest continuation of the growth momentum,” said Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments. 

 

The Governor was optimistic that “the trade pacts will improve investments and prospects for growth. An important takeaway from the Governor’s remark that “there has been an uptick in bank credit growth in recent months” is that the profitability of banks is likely to improve going forward, and this is good news for banking stocks, said Dr. V. K Vijayakumar.