Benchmarks trade near neutral lines during late afternoon deals

Benchmarks pared most of their gains and traded near the neutral lines during late afternoon deals, weigh by profit booking at higher level. Besides, ongoing fund outflows from foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to dampen investors’ sentiments. The FIIs were the net sellers of equities worth Rs 3,068.49 crore on Tuesday’s session. However, euphoria around the trade deal between India and European Union have helped markets to hold their ground above the neutral lines. Further, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has said that the free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the EU is likely to come in force within the 2026 calendar year.

On the global front, Asian equity markets were trading mostly in green tracking broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. European equity markets were trading lower ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision and earnings from mega-cap tech earnings.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81985.99, up by 128.51 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 81814.75 and 82503.97. There were 19 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Capital Goods up by 4.71%, Oil & Gas up by 3.37%, Industrials up by 2.95%, PSU up by 2.83% and Energy up by 2.82%, while Consumer Durables down by 1.16%, FMCG down by 1.09%, TECK down by 0.60%, IT down by 0.25% and Auto down by 0.22% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharat Electronics up by 8.60%, Eternal up by 4.77%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.48%, Trent up by 1.45% and Power Grid Corporation up by 1.42%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 4.36%, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.10%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.84%, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries down by 1.76% and Infosys down by 1.66% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, After the conclusion of negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union (EU), Department of Pharmaceuticals under Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers has said that the FTA is likely to give impetus to the Indian Pharmaceuticals sector, as it unlocks access to the $572.3 billion EU pharmaceuticals & medical devices market.

It further noted that this would enable Pharma industries to scale, generate employment, and reinforce India’s positioning as a reliable partner in the pharmaceuticals sector underlining its growing stature as the pharmacy of the world. It is expected to expand skilled jobs, industrial employment, stronger MSME participation and strengthen global supply chain integration.

Besides, coastal export hubs will be able to scale Export-led growth to support employment and processing intensive sectors.  Aligned with India’s vision of ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’, the India-EU FTA reinforces shared values, fosters innovation, laying the foundation for inclusive, resilient and future-ready growth for both India and Europe.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25224.30, up by 48.90 points or 0.19% after trading in a range of 25187.65 and 25372.10. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharat Electronics up by 8.53%, ONGC up by 7.62%, Eternal up by 4.73%, Hindalco up by 3.77% and Coal India up by 3.77%. On the flip side, Tata Consumer Products down by 5.64%, Asian Paints down by 4.18%, Maruti Suzuki down by 2.55%, Eicher Motors down by 2.44% and Hindustan Unilever down by 2.14% were the top losers.

Asian equity markets were trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 51.46 points or 0.1% to 53,385.00, Taiwan Weighted added 485.9 points or 1.48% to 32,803.82, Hang Seng advanced 701.05 points or 2.52% to 27,828.00, KOSPI increased 85.96 points or 1.66% to 5,170.81 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 11.34 points or 0.27% to 4,151.24, while Straits Times fell 14.26 points or 0.29% to 4,908.76 and Jakarta Composite plunged 703.83 points or 8.5% to 8,276.40.

European equity markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 15.03 points or 0.15% to 10,192.77, France’s CAC fell 83.62 points or 1.04% to 8,069.20 and Germany’s DAX lost 16.64 points or 0.07% to 24,877.80.