Benchmarks trade higher in early deals amid strong global cues

Indian equity benchmarks made a positive start on Friday tracking strong global cues amid subsiding rate-hike fears following dovish comments from US Federal Reserve official. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller indicated that a rate hike would not be warranted if underlying inflation continues to moderate. Some support also came as the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) data showed that surplus liquidity in the banking system has surged to a record high of Rs 9.71 lakh crore, boosted by flows received under the FCNR (B) scheme of the RBI.

Both Sensex and Nifty were trading in early deals but with divergence. Sensex was outperforming Nifty with gains of 0.65%, on account of value buying after sell-off in previous session. Index heavyweight - Reliance Industries was trading with gains of over one and half a percent. Nifty garnered 0.22% amid buying in IT and Teck stocks. However, upside remained capped amid foreign fund outflows. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net sellers, offloading equities worth Rs 2,345.87 crore on Thursday.

Global cues remained supportive with most of the Asian markets were trading higher, with technology shares leading gains, as investors took heart from a rally on Wall Street after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller eased fears of an imminent U.S. interest-rate hike. Investors also focusing on the U.S. employment data due later in the day for clues on the Fed’s policy path.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 76647.71, up by 494.85 points or 0.65% after trading in a range of 76529.50 and 76746.80. There were 26 stocks advancing against 4 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 1.35%, IT up by 0.83%, TECK up by 0.58%, Realty up by 0.46% and Energy up by 0.42%, while FMCG down by 0.16%, Healthcare down by 0.10% and Power down by 0.09% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Trent up by 2.41%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.65%, Reliance Industries up by 1.62%, Bharat Electronics up by 1.48% and Interglobe Aviation up by 1.26%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 0.18%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.18%, Hindustan Unilever down by 0.13% and NTPC down by 0.03% were the few losers.

Meanwhile, with an aim to fast-track the bilateral trade pact process, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said details of the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) with the US will be announced once Washington offers India preferential terms over its competitors. In February, India and the US announced the finalisation of the framework for the first phase of the trade pact. However, changes in the US tariff landscape have led to further negotiations between the two countries. The US imposed an additional 10 per cent tariff on several countries, including India, from July 24.

Goyal is scheduled to visit the US in late September to attend the G20 Trade Ministerial in Milwaukee and hold bilateral talks with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. Issues related to the trade pact are expected to be discussed during the meetings. The two-day ministerial will begin on September 30. The US holds the G20 presidency in 2026. 

Countries such as Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia are major competitors of India in the US market. A tariff advantage over these countries would improve the price competitiveness of Indian goods in the American market. India exported goods worth about $87 billion to the US in 2025-26.

Goyal further said that India’s nine free trade agreements (FTAs), covering economies with a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of about $60 trillion, would provide preferential access to nearly two-thirds of global trade. He said the other FTAs that India is expected to conclude over the next few months and years - including with Canada, Mexico, Chile, Mercosur, SACU (Southern African Customs Union), GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) and Israel - along with efforts to review existing trade deals with ASEAN, South Korea and Japan, would give India access to 75 per cent of global trade at tariff rates lower than those faced by its competitors. India has already implemented trade pacts with the UK, Mauritius, Oman, the UAE and Australia.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23925.45, up by 52.00 points or 0.22% after trading in a range of 23895.85 and 23949.85. There were 33 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Trent up by 2.17%, Reliance Industries up by 1.57%, Wipro up by 1.33%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.01% and JIO Financial Services up by 0.80%. On the flip side, Coal India down by 1.63%, Eicher Motors down by 1.02%, Cipla down by 0.88%, Maruti Suzuki India down by 0.75% and ONGC down by 0.55% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng jumped 524.69 points or 2.08% to 25,738.00, KOSPI surged 98.84 points or 1.5% to 6,678.32, Straits Times rose 64.04 points or 1.11% to 5,811.75, Nikkei 225 advanced 701.52 points or 1.09% to 64,916.00, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 326.87 points or 0.71% to 46,184.53 and Shanghai Composite added 13.76 points or 0.35% to 3,955.85, while Jakarta Composite was down by 6.65 points or 0.1% to 6,661.24.