Markets trade in red in early deals on Wednesday

Indian equity markets have made cautious start and are trading lower with cut of over quarter percent in early deals on Wednesday on account of selling in Hindustan Unilever, Titan, Bharat Electronics, Tata MotorsPassenger and Trent companies’ stocks. Traders adopted wait-and-watch approach ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s interest-rate decision and policy cues due Friday. Sentiments were subdued as Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the market, selling shares worth Rs 3,642.30 crore on Tuesday. Depreciation in Indian rupee against dollar also weighed down sentiments. Rupee weakened by 13 paise to 90.10 against the dollar in early trade at the Inter-bank Foreign Exchange market on account of increased demand for the American currency from importers and banks.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green following the positive cues from the US markets overnight. Back home, on the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen piling up positions Telecom, IT, TECK, Healthcare and Metal, while selling was witnessed in FMCG, Consumer Durables, PSU, Auto and Consumer Disc. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 84890.69, down by 247.58 points or 0.29% after trading in a range of 84888.40 and 85269.68. There were 7 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.27%, while Small cap index down by 0.13%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 0.86%, IT up by 0.60%, TECK up by 0.42%, Healthcare up by 0.09% and Metal up by 0.06%, while FMCG down by 0.89%, Consumer Durables down by 0.72%, PSU down by 0.60%, Auto down by 0.55% and Consumer Disc down by 0.46% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS up by 1.16%, Infosys up by 0.78%, Eternal up by 0.55%, Sun Pharma up by 0.41% and HCL Technologies up by 0.37%. On the flip side, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.62%, Titan down by 1.16%, Bharat Electronics down by 0.99%, Tata MotorsPassenger down by 0.86% and Trent down by 0.64% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) President Anant Goenka has said that India is in a 'sweet spot' to sustain growth, and the GDP is expected to expand by over 7 per cent this financial year (FY26) on the back of strong macro fundamentals and ongoing reforms. Goenka also said that the chamber's focus for the coming year would be to increase the share of the manufacturing sector in the GDP from its current 15-17 per cent to 20-25 per cent levels over time.

To make sure that happens, he said the chamber has outlined priorities such as increasing R&D spending from 0.7 per cent to over one per cent of GDP; strengthening industry-academia partnerships, supporting the government's efforts to further promote ease of doing business, trade and supply chain security, and enhancing manufacturing excellence which includes focus on quality, women in the workforce, and adopting sustainable practices. He stated ‘I think GDP should be 7 plus kind of level (during 2025-26). After all the changes that have happened with respect to the income tax slab, GST changes, and labour code changes, I think that with the reforms coming in, the macros of India are looking very strong.’

Challenges at the trade front too will be resolved in a very short period of time, he said, adding, ‘so to that extent, we're in a sweet spot. Private investment capex is also something which is ready for a change.’ He said as capacity utilisation rises, greenfield investments by industry will also pick up. India's economy grew at a higher-than-expected 8.2 per cent - the fastest pace in six quarters - in July-September of current financial year, as front-loading of production ahead of GST rates cut boosted consumption that helped offset the impact of steep US tariffs.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25,940.15, down by 92 points or 0.36% after trading in a range of 26004.40 and 26066.45. There were 7 stocks advancing against 43 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Wipro up by 0.90%, TCS up by 0.84%, Hindalco up by 0.82%, Infosys up by 0.72% and Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 0.67%. On the flip side, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.42%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 1.00%, Max Healthcare down by 0.88%, Tata MotorsPassenger down by 0.86% and Titan down by 0.77% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 794.55 points or 1.61% to 50,098.00, Taiwan Weighted added 144.43 points or 0.52% to 27,708.70, Jakarta Composite gained 27.46 points or 0.32% to 8,644.50, KOSPI increased 55.87 points or 1.4% to 4,050.80 and Straits Times rose 9.93 points or 0.22% to 4,547.89. However, Shanghai Composite weakened 3.49 points or 0.09% to 3,894.22 and Hang Seng declined 238.05 points or 0.91% to 25,857.00.