Key gauges trade flat in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks were trading flat in morning deals, amid lack of global cues and domestic triggers. Traders remained cautious as exchange data showed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) returned to selling mode, offloading Rs 457 crore worth of Indian equities on Monday. Some concern also came as the Ministry of Commerce & Industry’s data showed that the output of eight key infrastructure sectors grew at a slower pace of 1.8 per cent in November 2025 as compared to 5.8 per cent in the same month last year, amid a dip in production of crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, and electricity. However, traders took some support with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s statement that India is at an advanced stage of negotiations for a bilateral trade agreement with the US. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. However, traders largely stayed on the sidelines ahead of Christmas holidays. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 85533.14, down by 34.34 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 85342.99 and 85704.93. There were 17 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.02%, while Small cap index was up by 0.28%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 0.67%, Basic Materials up by 0.67%, Utilities up by 0.61%, Metal up by 0.59% and Energy up by 0.57%, while IT down by 0.87%, TECK down by 0.85%, Consumer Durables down by 0.31%, Auto down by 0.18% and Realty down by 0.13% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Ultratech Cement up by 1.77%, Power Grid Corporation up by 0.94%, NTPC up by 0.78%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.65% and HDFC Bank up by 0.56%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 1.44%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.86%, TCS down by 0.78%, Asian Paints down by 0.71% and ICICI Bank down by 0.61% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has said that knowledge is the most powerful tool for India to become a $5 trillion economy and the third largest economy in the world. He stated that futuristic technology will decide the future of any country. He said that taking technology to the grassroots, especially in agriculture and rural India, is key for making India self-reliant and globally strong. 

Moreover, he said entrepreneurship, science, technology, research, skill and best practices are cumulatively referred to as knowledge, and turning this knowledge into wealth will shape the future. Further, he stated Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put forth a target in the form of a mission and that is making India a $5 trillion economy and the world’s third-largest economy.  Besides, he pointed out that nearly 60 per cent of India's population depends on agriculture, but the sector contributes only about 12 per cent to GDP. 

He added manufacturing sector contributes about 22-24 per cent to the GDP, while agriculture and allied activities together account for only around 12 per cent. Unless we improve the economic condition of farmers, the poor and the marginalised, the country cannot truly progress.’ Highlighting the need to promote industries in rural areas to curb migration to cities, he said if industries are set up in rural India, migration to urban centres will automatically come down.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 26180.95, up by 8.55 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 26119.05 and 26206.55. There were 32 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 3.26%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.77%, Shriram Finance up by 1.14%, Power Grid Corp up by 1.00% and ONGC up by 0.94%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 1.56%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.88%, Max Healthcare Inst down by 0.81%, TCS down by 0.79% and Asian Paints down by 0.68% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Shanghai Composite strengthened 7.66 points or 0.2% to 3,925.02, KOSPI increased 12.20 points or 0.3% to 4,118.13, Hang Seng advanced 7.23 points or 0.03% to 25,809.00, Straits Times rose 20.52 points or 0.45% to 4,630.81 and Taiwan Weighted added 173.32 points or 0.62% to 28,322.96.

On the flip side, Nikkei 225 slipped 89.39 points or 0.18% to 50,313.00 and Jakarta Composite plunged 31.65 points or 0.37% to 8,614.19.