Asian stocks fell as traders braced for a turbulent Tuesday, following a bruising session on Wall Street as cracks appeared in the artificial intelligence sector powering the bull market.

Wall Street tumbled on Monday, January 27, on fears the big US companies that have feasted on the artificial intelligence (AI) frenzy are threatened by DeepSeek, an AI competitor in China

Here's a table showing how US stocks performed on Monday:

Source: Equitymaster

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading 329 points higher and NSE Nifty is trading 76 points higher.

Axis Bank, Tata Steel, and ICICI Bank are among the top gainers today.

M&M, Cipla, and Wipro on the other hand are among the top losers today.

The BSE Midcap index is trading 0.9% lower and the BSE Smallcap index is trading 2% lower.

Sectoral indices are trading on a mixed note today with stocks in the media sector, telecom sector,r and finance sector witnessing buying. Meanwhile, stocks in the power sector, metal sector, and healthcare sector witnessing selling pressure.

The rupee is trading at Rs 86.53 against the US dollar.
 

Tata Steel Q3 Profit Plunges 43%

Tata Steel, Asia's oldest steelmaker, attributed a decline in its revenues for the third fiscal quarter that ended 31 December to the impact of China, the region's largest steelmaker.

The company reported a consolidated revenue of Rs 536.48 billion (bn), down 3% from the Rs 553.91 bn reported during the same period last year.

This decline came despite an 8% year-on-year increase in steel sales, totaling 7.72 million (m) tonnes for the quarter.

The consolidated profit dropped sharply by 43%, nearly halving to Rs 2.95 bn.

Tata Steel's European operations continued to weigh on its financials, though losses have narrowed. The UK unit recorded an EBITDA loss of £67 m (approximately Rs 7.24 bn), while the Dutch operations broke even.

EBITDA, a key performance metric representing earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization, highlighted the challenges faced in Europe.

In India, Tata Steel achieved an EBITDA of Rs 14,964 per tonne of steel sold, translating to strong domestic performance.

However, at a consolidated level, including European operations, EBITDA per tonne dropped to Rs 7,759.
 

ITC Hotels Listing Date Announced

ITC has confirmed that its demerged hotel entity, ITC Hotels, will be listed on the NSE and BSE on Wednesday, 29 January.

The demerger of ITC's hotel business, originally announced in July 2023, officially came into effect on 1 January 2025.

The company set 6 January 2025, as the record date for the demerged entity. Shareholders holding ITC stock as of 3 January were allotted 1 share of ITC Hotels for every 10 shares of ITC they owned (1:10 ratio).

Headquartered in Kolkata, ITC began as a tobacco company and has since diversified into multiple segments, including hotels, packaging, agri-business, IT, and FMCG.

With this demerger, the company has separated its hotel vertical to focus on growth in the segment.

Wipro Secures IT Partnership

Wipro Ltd., a leading IT services company, announced on 27 January that it had been selected as a strategic partner by FrieslandCampina, a global dairy giant with a legacy spanning over 150 years.

The partnership is designed to support FrieslandCampina's strategic goals and deliver targeted business outcomes.

Under the five-and-a-half-year agreement, Wipro will oversee FrieslandCampina's core IT services, providing expertise in areas such as end-to-end service management, infrastructure and cybersecurity services, and enterprise application management.

Additionally, Wipro will lead digital transformation initiatives, focusing on HR and employee services to enhance operational excellence, improve user experience, and ensure seamless business continuity, the company stated in a regulatory filing.
 

Piramal Enterprises Q3 Results

Piramal Enterprises, a leading Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC), reported a net profit of Rs 390 m for the quarter ending 31 December 2024, marking a turnaround from a net loss of Rs 23.8 bn in the same period last year.

In Q3 FY24, the company recorded an exceptional loss of Rs 35.4 bn due to a one-time provision on its Alternate Investment Fund (AIF) book, as per the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) circular on AIFs.

This year, a recovery of Rs 5.5 bn related to the AIF provision contributed to a Rs 3.8 bn gain in the profit and loss account, according to Jairam Sridharan, Managing Director of Piramal Capital & Housing Finance, during a post-results media interaction.

Sequentially, net profit declined 76% from Rs 1.6 bn in the September quarter due to elevated provisions, which nearly doubled to Rs 6.5 bn in Q3 FY25 compared to Q2.

Net interest income rose by 13% year-on-year to Rs 9.4 bn from Rs 8.4 bn in Q3 FY24, while net interest margins improved to 5.7%, up from 4.9% in the same period last year.

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