IT guidance season closes with no large-cap raise: Infosys's cut stands, HCLTech holds, TCS's $9.5bn order book doesn't move the number Information Technology
Infosys's FY27 CC revenue guidance remains cut to 1.5-3.0% (from 1.5-3.5%), confirmed as of its July 23 update. Sources disagree on whether HCLTech's FY27 services guidance was lowered pre-results or simply maintained at 1.5-4.5% as reported after results -- either way it was not raised. TCS opened FY27 with a $9.5bn order book, including an $800m AI deal with SKF, but that bookings strength has not translated into a guidance upgrade. No IT large-cap has raised FY27 CC guidance this season.
NALCO's alumina tailwind unwinds within days as Norsk Hydro's Alunorte refinery resumes higher output Metals & Mining
Alunorte cut output to 50% of capacity on Aug 12 on a gas shortage, briefly lifting NALCO, Hindalco and Vedanta Aluminium shares as much as 8.8-9% on tighter alumina supply. Within days Norsk Hydro struck a temporary deal with its gas supplier and ramped output back up; NALCO fell 5.5% on the restart news. That is a much faster reversal than the 60-day window the desk's open claim on this tailwind's durability allowed for, though the supplier deal is described as temporary, so a further disruption is not ruled out.
US confirms the 2028 generic-tariff step-up is still on the calendar; no exemption for Indian generics Pharmaceuticals
Multiple outlets confirm the Trump administration's Section 232 plan is unchanged from its original announcement: 0% tariffs on generics through August 2026, a 100% step-up from August 2028, then 200% a year later. There is no sign the Section 232 process is concluding with a permanent exemption for India, which supplies roughly 40% of US generic drug volume by most estimates -- restating rather than moving the sector's standing multi-year overhang.
July auto volumes hit a record, but Maruti is raising list prices even as festive discounts run to Rs 1.35 lakh Automobiles
Maruti's July 2026 sales rose 33.7% YoY to 241,421 units (domestic sales at an all-time high), and industry PV sales were up ~33% YoY, partly on dealer stocking ahead of a dense festive calendar. Maruti simultaneously announced list-price hikes of up to Rs 30,000 from August -- typically a cost pass-through signal -- while dealers are running discounts as high as Rs 90,000-1.35 lakh on the same models. The coexistence of a price hike and heavy discounting makes July's strength hard to read cleanly as organic demand versus discount-assisted stocking; the August/September data the sector's open claim needs is not out yet.