Sensex, Nifty trade notably higher in early deals tracking strong global cues

Indian equity benchmarks made flat-to-positive start on Wednesday tracking gains in Asian peers as softer-than-expected U.S. inflation data helped offset concerns over escalating U.S.-Iran tensions, with the two countries exchanging strikes and battling for control of the Strait of Hormuz. Sensex and Nifty were trading notably higher with gains over half a percent each in early deals led by strong buying in banking and financial stocks. Some support came as the government data showed net direct tax collection grew 16.40 per cent to over Rs 6.51 lakh crore till July 13 this fiscal, driven by higher corporate tax mop-up. Traders took note of report that Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal has said that India and UK will implement a comprehensive economic and trade agreement (CETA) from July 15, with an aim to boost two-way commerce to $100 billion by 2030.  

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 77542.64, up by 487.70 points or 0.63% after trading in a range of 77072.53 and 77641.86. There were 23 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 1.04%, Bankex up by 1.04%, Realty up by 0.96%, Consumer Discretionary up by 0.94% and Capital Goods up by 0.83%, while IT down by 0.42%, Utilities down by 0.32%, TECK down by 0.21%, Metal down by 0.19% and FMCG down by 0.05% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finance up by 2.44%, Interglobe Aviation up by 1.83%, Axis Bank up by 1.60%, State Bank of India up by 1.50% and Ultratech Cement up by 1.42%. On the flip side, TCS down by 1.32%, Infosys down by 0.94%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.70%, Power Grid down by 0.56% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.53% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, with an aim to boost India-UK bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal has said that India and the UK will implement the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) from July 15, 2026. Bilateral trade in goods and services currently stands at around $55-60 billion. Under the agreement, several key Indian export sectors, including textiles, leather and footwear, gems and jewellery, and plastics, will gain duty-free access to the UK market from July 15.

To safeguard India's emerging clean mobility ecosystem, the country has not granted any tariff concessions on electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid vehicles, or hydrogen-powered vehicles during the first five years of the agreement's implementation. However, India has extended duty concessions on silver imports from the UK under the CETA. Silver bars, one of India's largest imports from the UK, accounted for nearly $5.2 billion in imports during FY26, representing about 45 per cent of India's global silver-bar imports. In contrast, gold bars, despite imports worth $111 million, have not been granted any tariff concessions, reflecting India's cautious approach towards precious metal imports.

The agreement also provides relief to Indian companies operating in the UK. Indian firms will not be required to make social security contributions for employees deputed to the UK for up to five years. At present, Indian employees and their employers contribute around 23 per cent of salaries to the UK's National Insurance System. The provision is likely to benefit more than 75,000 Indian workers and over 900 employers by exempting both employees and employers from these contributions during assignments of up to five years in the UK.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24195.10, up by 143.05 points or 0.59% after trading in a range of 24069.05 and 24218.15. There were 36 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Shriram Finance up by 3.17%, Bajaj Finance up by 2.49%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 2.26%, SBI Life Insurance up by 2.05% and Interglobe Aviation up by 1.85%. On the flip side, TCS down by 1.26%, Hindalco Industries down by 1.11%, Infosys down by 1.09%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.83% and Wipro down by 0.77% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted jumped 971.55 points or 2.13% to 45,709.50, Nikkei 225 surged 801.5 points or 1.18% to 68,545.00, KOSPI rose 551.04 points or 7.44% to 7,407.87, Hang Seng gained 336.27 points or 1.36% to 24,677.00, Straits Times increased 55.91 points or 1.01% to 5,551.52 and Jakarta Composite was up by 29.48 points or 0.49% to 6,069.00, while Shanghai Composite was down by 3.23 points or 0.08% to 3,963.90.