Sensex, Nifty trade lower amid FIIs outflows, weak global cues

Indian equity benchmarks made a negative start on Tuesday, tracking weak cues from global markets in the run-up to the release of key U.S. economic data that could offer clarity on the economic and rate outlook. Sensex and Nifty were trading lower in early deals on account of sustained foreign fund outflows. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) continued their selling trend in December and offloaded equities of Rs 11,468 crore. Traders failed to take any sense of relief with the commerce ministry data showing that India's merchandise exports to the US rose 22.61 per cent to $6.98 billion in November despite steep 50 per cent tariffs on domestic goods.

On the global front, all Asian markets were trading in red, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, with continued weakness in energy stocks as well as technology stocks on uncertainty remains about AI spending and the possibility of a tech bubble. Traders were also reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of some key U.S. economic data in the coming days, including retail sales and inflation.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 84897.24, down by 316.12 points or 0.37% after trading in a range of 84795.36 and 85059.96. There were 8 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining, while 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.38%, while Small cap index was down by 0.32%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 0.66%, FMCG up by 0.54%, Consumer Durables up by 0.50% and Auto up by 0.06%, while Realty down by 0.79%, IT down by 0.75%, Metal down by 0.72%, Bankex down by 0.65% and Capital Goods down by 0.53% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 1.30%, Asian Paints up by 0.49%, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles up by 0.26%, Titan Co up by 0.21% and Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.14%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 3.34%, Axis Bank down by 2.92%, Tata Steel down by 1.30%, Bharat Electronics down by 1.07% and Infosys down by 0.94% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has conducted the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) and showed that India’s overall Unemployment Rate (UR) among persons of age 15 years and above fell to its lowest level (since April 2025) at 4.7% for the month of November 2025 from 5.2% in October 2025. In November 2025, the rural UR fell to a new low of 3.9%, while the urban UR decreased to 6.5%, matching its previous lowest level recorded in April 2025.

UR for both males and females aged 15 years and above showed a notable decline in November 2025. Among females, the UR fell to 4.8% in November 2025, down from 5.4% in October 2025 driven by reductions in both rural and urban female URs, which decreased from 4.0% to 3.4% and 9.7% to 9.3%, respectively. Further, the overall male UR decreased to 4.6% in November 2025, compared with 5.1% in October 2025. Disaggregated by sector, rural and urban male URs stood at 4.1% and 5.6% in November 2025, compared with 4.6% and 6.1% observed in the preceding month.

Besides, Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) among persons of age 15 years and above increased to 55.8% in November 2025, the highest level recorded since April 2025. The increase in LFPR was primarily driven by rural areas, where the LFPR rose to 58.6% in November 2025 from 57.8% in October 2025. Compared with the previous month, urban LFPR decreased marginally from 50.5% to 50.4%.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25936.40, down by 90.90 points or 0.35% after trading in a range of 25901.65 and 25980.75. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharti Airtel up by 1.41%, Nestle up by 1.30%, Tata Consumer Products up by 1.26%, Titan Company up by 1.03% and Asian Paints up by 0.76%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 3.47%, Axis Bank down by 3.16%, JSW Steel down by 1.23%, Infosys down by 1.04% and JIO Financial Services down by 0.93% were the top losers.

All Asian markets are trading lower; Nikkei 225 slipped 636.11 points or 1.27% to 49,532.00, Hang Seng declined 489.88 points or 1.95% to 25,139.00, Taiwan Weighted lost 379.34 points or 1.36% to 27,487.60, KOSPI dropped 73.98 points or 1.81% to 4,016.61, Shanghai Composite weakened 47.07 points or 1.22% to 3,820.85, Jakarta Composite fell 20.7 points or 0.24% to 8,628.96 and Straits Times was down by 5.21 points or 0.11% to 4,583.96.