Key gauges trade near neutral lines with positive bias

Indian equity markets traded near the neutral lines with positive bias in late afternoon session ahead of monthly expiry of F&O contracts. Traders took note of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s statement that India will get an unprecedented market access at concessional duties for over 99 per cent of its exports by value in the European Union (EU) market, providing a boost to domestic labour-intensive sectors. However, upside remained limited amid persistent selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs). FIIs were the net sellers on Friday’s session, offloading equities worth Rs 4,113.38 crore. 

On the global front, Asian equity markets were trading mostly in green tracking gains on Wall Street's overnight. European equity markets were trading higher as India and the European Union have concluded negotiations on a comprehensive free trade agreement after nearly 20 years. Back home, Auto stocks came under significant selling pressure amid reports suggesting India will cut the import duty on European cars under the free trade agreement.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81611.40, up by 73.70 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 81088.59 and 81899.83. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 2.58%, Basic Materials up by 1.40%, PSU up by 1.05%, Bankex up by 0.64% and Oil & Gas up by 0.62%, while Auto down by 1.54%, Consumer Durables down by 1.47%, Consumer Discretionary down by 1.12%, FMCG down by 0.65% and Telecom down by 0.54% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Axis Bank up by 4.23%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 3.62%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.02%, Tata Steel up by 1.97% and Ultratech Cement up by 1.90%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 4.82%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 3.69%, Asian Paints down by 2.75%, Eternal down by 2.47% and Bajaj Finserv down by 2.11% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has unveiled measures to inject liquidity into the banking system such as a combination of bond purchases, buy/sell FX swaps and repos. This move came following a review of current liquidity and financial conditions.

The Reserve Bank of India will conduct 90-day Variable Rate Repo (VRR) operation for an amount of Rs 25,000 crore on January 30, 2026, while USD/INR Buy/Sell Swap auction of $10 billion for a tenor of 3 years will be held on February 04, 2026.

Besides, open market operations (OMO) purchase auctions of Government of India securities for an aggregate amount of Rs 1,00,000 crore in two tranches of Rs 50,000 crore each to be held on February 05, 2026, and February 12, 2026. 

The central bank further noted that detailed instructions for each operation shall be issued separately and it will continue to monitor evolving liquidity and market conditions and take measures as appropriate to ensure orderly liquidity conditions.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25092.40, up by 43.75 points or 0.17% after trading in a range of 24932.55 and 25184.95. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 4.98%, Axis Bank up by 4.40%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 3.60%, Grasim Industries up by 3.21% and JSW Steel up by 3.11%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 4.81%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 3.86%, Asian Paints down by 2.85%, Eternal down by 2.47% and Max Healthcare Inst down by 2.24% were the top losers.

Asian equity markets were trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 393.75 points or 0.74% to 53,279.00, Taiwan Weighted added 253.4 points or 0.78% to 32,317.92, Hang Seng advanced 352.48 points or 1.3% to 27,118.00, KOSPI increased 135.26 points or 2.66% to 5,084.85, Straits Times rose 53.67 points or 1.09% to 4,914.60, Shanghai Composite strengthened 7.29 points or 0.18% to 4,139.90 and Jakarta Composite plunged 18.67 points or 0.21% to 8,956.66.

European equity markets were trading higher; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 23.35 points or 0.23% to 10,172.20, France’s CAC rose 0.45 points or 0.01% to 8,131.60 and Germany’s DAX gained 27.42 points or 0.11% to 24,960.50.