Markets trade under pressure amid renewed worries over global trade tensions

Indian equity benchmarks made a negative start on Monday tracking mixed cues from Asian counterparts amid renewed worries over a potential escalation in global trade tensions. Trump reportedly in talks to impose 10% tariff on the eight European countries on February 01. Sensex and Nifty were trading under pressure with losses of over half a percent each in early deals amid persistent outflows by FIIs from capital markets. Foreign portfolio investors withdrew over Rs 22,530 crore ($2.5 billion) from Indian equities so far this month amid rising US bond yields and a stronger dollar, continuing their selling streak from last year. Mixed set of earnings from index heavyweights also dragged markets lower. Wipro slipped after its Q3 consolidated profit declined 7 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 3,119 crore. Reliance Industries declined after it reported lower than expected numbers as its consolidated net profit stood at Rs 22,290 crore in Q3FY26. ICICI Bank dropped after its Q3 profit fell 4% Y-o-Y to Rs 11,317.9 crore as provisions more than doubled to Rs 2,555.6 crore.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly lower on Monday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street on Friday, amid ambiguity over the outlook for interest rates after some uncertainty about US President Donald Trump's pick for US Fed chair. Traders also remain cautious and may be reluctant to make significant moves amid the developments in Venezuela, political unrest in Iran and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 83117.34, down by 453.01 points or 0.54% after trading in a range of 83028.89 and 83539.93. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.47%, while Small cap index was down by 0.95%.

The only gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 0.35% and Capital Goods up by 0.26%, while Realty down by 1.18%, IT down by 0.93%, Telecom down by 0.90%, Energy down by 0.89% and TECK down by 0.86% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Interglobe Aviation up by 3.11%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.66%, Axis Bank up by 1.27%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.22% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.88%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 2.95%, Reliance Industries down by 2.12%, Infosys down by 1.21%, TCS down by 0.96% and Sun Pharma. down by 0.78% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has said that its Business Confidence Index (BCI) climbed to a five-quarter high of 66.5 in Q3 FY26, driven by optimism around demand, profitability, and investment conditions. This is the third consecutive quarter, when index rose. It said domestic demand remains the key driver, with two-thirds of firms reporting higher demand in Q2 FY26 and 72 per cent expecting further growth in Q3 FY26, aided by GST rate cuts and festive consumption. 

BCI is based on a sample survey of firms covering all industry sectors, including micro, small, medium, and large enterprises, from different regions. The survey also enumerated responses across industry groups, both in the public and private sectors, engaged in the manufacturing and services sectors. It was conducted during the first to third week of December 2025, covering more than 175 firms of varying sizes. Moreover, investment and hiring intentions remain robust. Notably, 69 per cent of respondents expect the RBI to cut the repo rate by the end of Q4 FY26 (January-March end).

CII expressed confidence that the reform momentum will continue in the Budget to sustain India's growth. The survey also revealed a boost to sales from GST cuts effective from September 22, as 56.3 per cent of respondents expect their sales to increase between 5 and 20 per cent in the coming quarters. Driven by bold reform initiatives, India has firmly established itself as the world's fastest-growing major economy, demonstrating remarkable resilience amid global uncertainty shaped by geopolitical tensions, trade weaponisation, and a slowing world economy.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25556.50, down by 137.85 points or 0.54% after trading in a range of 25528.30 and 25653.30. There were 21 stocks advancing against 29 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Interglobe Aviation up by 3.21%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.66%, Axis Bank up by 1.23%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.21% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.92%. On the flip side, Wipro down by 7.57%, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles down by 3.03%, ICICI Bank down by 2.91%, Reliance Industries down by 2.17% and Max Healthcare Inst down by 1.31% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mixed; Nikkei 225 slipped 477.17 points or 0.88% to 53,459.00, Hang Seng declined 249.96 points or 0.94% to 26,595.00, Straits Times fell 23.69 points or 0.49% to 4,825.41 and Jakarta Composite was down by 5.17 points or 0.06% to 9,070.24. On the other hand, Taiwan Weighted rose 194.86 points or 0.62% to 31,603.56, KOSPI increased 40.29 points or 0.83% to 4,881.03 and Shanghai Composite was up by 5.27 points or 0.13% to 4,107.18.