Nearly half of BSE 200 stocks fail to deliver returns in 2026. What’s dragging them down?

Nearly half of BSE 200 stocks fail to deliver returns in 2026.

What’s dragging them down?

ET Bureau Synopsis This year, numerous firms across various sectors are grappling with a lack of returns, a stark contrast to the previous years' performances.

Key industries such as automobiles, FMCG, and IT are showing marked declines.

Interestingly, capital goods stocks have demonstrated resilience, fueled by increased infrastructure spending.

This downturn in the market parallels a slowdown in systematic investment plan inflows.

By Sachin Kumar & Shailesh Kadam, ET Bureau XPeers BSE Share Price Multi Commodity Exchange of India Share Price Indian Energy Exchange Share Price Last Updated: Aug 29, 2026, 10:02:00 AM IST Follow us Nearly half the broader market has failed to generate returns so far this year.ADVERTISEMENT As many as 97 BSE 200 companies, accounting for 49% of the index, have not yielded returns year-to-date.

The trend was similar in the first eight months of 2025.

This marks a deterioration from the comparable periods of 2023 and 2024, when only 10-20% of the index constituents failed to generate returns.The benchmark Sensex has declined nearly 9% this year, dropping to 77,264 on August 28 from 85,220 on January 1.

The majority of the companies that did not deliver returns were from sectors including automobiles, cement, FMCG, and IT.

The latest trend coincides with the deceleration in incremental systematic investment plan (SIP) flows.

After hitting a record ₹32,087 crore in March, monthly SIP inflows have remained below it ever since.

The year so far has not been good for IT, FMCG and insurance companies.

Of the 12 constituents from the IT and FMCG sectors in the BSE 200 index, nine failed to post returns, and none of the six insurance companies did either.IT stocks are facing selling pressure driven by a combination of technology disruption fears, weak discretionary spending, and slower US demand.

Of the 10 capital goods firms in the index, seven have generated returns so far this year.ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Among the index components, Rail Vikas Nigam was the top loser, declining nearly 40% year-to-date, followed by Patanjali Foods, which has fallen 36%, and ITC at 33%.

Wipro and Indian Railway Finance Corporation have declined nearly 32% each.

Top gainers include Hitachi Energy, which rose nearly 85%, Solar Industries India, which rose 68%, and Adani Energy Solutions at 57%.