Export-oriented stocks in focus

Export-oriented stocks were under pressure on Monday morning as markets turned cautious ahead of a closely watched US Supreme Court ruling on the legality and scope of tariff actions initiated during former President Donald Trump’s administration. The uncertainty has emerged as a fresh global overhang, particularly for export-heavy markets such as India, with investors cutting risk early in the session amid fears of renewed trade friction and policy unpredictability.

At the heart of the concern is whether the court’s decision could reopen the door for broader or more aggressive use of executive authority on tariffs, especially if Trump’s trade policies gain renewed legal backing ahead of the US election cycle. A ruling perceived as supportive of past tariff actions could revive protectionist rhetoric, raising the risk of higher duties on imports across sectors such as metals, engineering goods, auto components, chemicals, textiles and IT hardware. This has direct implications for Indian exporters, many of whom have meaningful exposure to the US market and have already been grappling with weak global demand, currency volatility and pricing pressures.

Markets are reacting not to an immediate policy change, but to event risk and forward uncertainty. Even the possibility of renewed tariff actions or prolonged legal ambiguity is enough to delay order flows, disrupt supply-chain planning and compress valuation multiples for export-led businesses. As a result, investors are opting for caution, keeping Indian equities in the red in early trade, while defensives and domestically driven themes continue to show relative resilience. The broader takeaway is that until clarity emerges from the US ruling and its political ramifications, export-oriented stocks are likely to see heightened volatility, with sentiment driven more by global macro signals than near-term fundamentals.

Thus export-oriented stocks are clearly in focus and under pressure, reflecting caution ahead of the US Supreme Court ruling on Trump-era tariffs and the broader risk of renewed trade uncertainty.

IT services names are among the most watched, given their high US revenue exposure. Large-caps such as TCS, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Wipro and Tech Mahindra were seeing selling interest, while mid-tier exporters like Persistent Systems, LTIMindtree, Coforge and Mphasis are also in focus as investors reassessed near-term deal visibility and discretionary spending by US clients.

In pharmaceuticals, export-heavy players with sizeable US generics exposure such as Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Cipla, Lupin and Aurobindo Pharma were being closely tracked.

Metals and engineering exporters were another pocket under scrutiny. Stocks such as Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Hindalco, Vedanta, along with capital-goods and engineering names like Larsen & Toubro, Bharat Forge, Cummins India and Thermax, were reacting to the risk of higher trade barriers and volatile commodity flows. Auto ancillaries with strong overseas exposure, including Bharat Forge, Motherson, Endurance Technologies and Sona BLW, were also on investors’ radar.

Overall, the pressure is broad-based rather than stock-specific. Until there is clarity on the US court ruling and its potential policy spillovers, export-oriented stocks are likely to remain in focus, with market participants preferring a wait-and-watch approach over aggressive positioning.