Bourses extend gains in early afternoon session

Indian markets extended their gains in early afternoon session as traders preferred to buy fundamental strong stocks. Traders took note of report that wholesale price inflation extended upward momentum for the third straight month, at 1.81 per cent in January, driven by an uptick in prices of food, non-food articles, and manufactured items on a month-on-month basis. Wholesale Price Index based inflation was 2.51% in January last year, while in the previous month (December 2025), it was 0.83%. Sector wise, Gem and Jewellery sector remained in limelight as GJEPC has said that India's gem and jewellery exports declined 5.79 per cent on-year in January 2026 to $2,238.54 million as compared to $2,376.02 million in January 2025 On the global front, Asian markets were trading in green despite Japan's industrial production decreased as initially estimated at the end of the year. Industrial production dropped 0.1 percent monthly in December, much slower than the 2.7 percent decline in November.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 82921.07, up by 294.31 points or 0.36% after trading in a range of 82276.95 and 82926.31. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 1.92%, Utilities up by 1.73%, Healthcare up by 0.75%, Bankex up by 0.61% and Capital Goods was up by 0.58%, while Auto down by 0.86%, IT down by 0.71%, Consumer Disc down by 0.42%, TECK down by 0.26% and Basic Materials was down by 0.24% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid up by 3.64%, HDFC Bank up by 2.36%, NTPC up by 1.56%, Adani Ports up by 1.43% and Axis Bank up by 1.29%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 1.64%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.59%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.28%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.95% and Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.81% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, government of India has approved the second part of the Fund of Funds (FoF 2.0) scheme with an outlay of Rs 10,000 crore under the Startup India initiative. The FoF 2.0 has been designed to continue the momentum of investments in startups, with an expanded scope over FFS 1.0 which was launched in 2016. The scheme is aimed at mobilising long-term domestic capital, strengthening the venture capital ecosystem, and supporting innovation-led entrepreneurship across the country. The FoF 2.0 is designed to take Indian innovation to the next level with a targeted, segmented funding approach to support deep tech and tech-driven innovative manufacturing. 

Under the part of the fund, the entire corpus of Rs 10,000 crore has been committed to 145 Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs). Such supported AIFs have invested over Rs 25,500 crore in more than 1,370 startups across the country in various sectors, such as agriculture, artificial intelligence, robotics, automotive, clean tech, consumer goods and services, e-commerce, education, fintech, food and beverages, healthcare, manufacturing, space tech, and biotechnology, amongst others. This fund played a key role in nurturing first-time founders, crowding in private capital, and helping build a strong foundation for India's venture capital ecosystem.

It will prioritise breakthroughs in high-tech areas that require long-term capital. The focus will also be on empowering early-growth stage founders to provide a safety net for new and innovative ideas, reducing early-stage failures caused by a lack of funding. Moreover, it will encourage investments beyond major metros so that innovation thrives in every corner of the country. The scheme will also address high-risk capital gaps and strengthen India's domestic venture capital base, particularly smaller funds, to further boost the domestic investment landscape. Startup India FoF 2.0 will have an Empowered Committee to provide guidance and directions.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25576.05, up by 104.95 points or 0.41% after trading in a range of 25372.70 and 25576.50. There were 30 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid up by 3.78%, Coal India up by 3.19%, HDFC Bank up by 2.61%, Adani Enterprises up by 2.36% and Max Healthcare Inst up by 1.92%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 1.55%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.51%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.23%, Jio Financial down by 1.21% and Bajaj Finance down by 0.99% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading in green; Hang Seng advanced 159.88 points or 0.6% to 26,727.00, Nikkei 225 surged 51.03 points or 0.09% to 56,993.00 and Straits Times was up by 0.8 points or 0.02% to 4,938.58.