Indian equity benchmarks made flat-to-positive start on Friday and soon gained some traction amid foreign fund inflows. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) pumped Rs 14,974.68 crore into Indian equities in Thursday’s session, marking their biggest single-day net purchase in almost six years.
Sensex and Nifty were trading firm in early deals with gains of around half a percent each on account of buying in TECK, IT and Auto stocks. However, gains remained limited amid rise in crude oil prices as continued uncertainty over negotiations between Washington and Tehran, along with risks to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, kept concerns over global oil supplies alive.
On the global front, Asian markets were trading in red tracking a sharp sell-off in US equities with technology and AI-linked stocks facing significant pressure amid fears of more AI scrutiny, particularly on data center construction.
The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 79825.55, up by 515.54 points or 0.65% after trading in a range of 79016.05 and 79837.49. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.
The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were TECK up by 1.28%, IT up by 1.07%, Auto up by 0.86%, Consumer Durables up by 0.39% and Healthcare up by 0.10%, while Capital Goods down by 3.45%, Industrials down by 2.33%, Power down by 2.06%, Metal down by 1.52% and Basic Materials down by 1.24% were the top losing indices on BSE.
The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 4.87%, Titan Company up by 2.19%, TCS up by 1.71%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.41% and Infosys up by 1.39%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 2.26%, Power Grid down by 2.16%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.84%, Bharat Electronics down by 1.51% and Tata Steel down by 1.46% were the top losers.
Meanwhile, Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) founder Ajay Srivastava has said US President Donald Trump’s political setback in the November 2026 midterm elections could accelerate India-US trade negotiations, with an agreement potentially concluded within two months. He said the results may push Trump to prioritise trade discussions and expedite the proposed deal, which is reportedly nearing completion despite some remaining differences.
With Democrats gaining control of both chambers of Congress, he believes Trump may seek an early trade agreement with India to demonstrate his influence internationally amid domestic political constraints. He also said the US could continue using the threat of additional tariffs linked to India's purchases of Russian crude oil as a negotiating tool, potentially imposing tariffs of 17-19 per cent instead of the much higher levels discussed earlier. Referring to the proposed Graham Act and the expected 60-day decision period, he said the agreement could be finalised within approximately two months, as part of the period has already elapsed.
However, GTRI cautioned that Trump's political setback may not result in a less restrictive US trade policy. Its latest report raised concerns that the proposed framework requires India to reduce tariffs while the US retains its regular Most Favoured Nation (MFN) duties. It also flagged India's proposed purchase and policy commitments, the possibility of additional US tariffs and potential conflicts with India's World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations. The report warned that the arrangement could weaken India's negotiating position while allowing the US to retain significant tariff leverage. Thus, despite the possibility of faster negotiations, Washington's broader protectionist trade approach is unlikely to change significantly.
Separately, in June, US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer led a delegation to New Delhi to meet Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. The discussions reviewed key elements of the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) and advanced negotiations on the proposed interim deal. In 2025, bilateral goods trade between India and the US stood at $149.42 billion, comprising Indian exports of $103.82 billion and US exports of approximately $45.6 billion. Bilateral services trade totalled $92.23 billion, with India exporting $48.67 billion and importing $43.56 billion worth of services.
The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24642.05, up by 105.45 points or 0.43% after trading in a range of 24388.05 and 24645.15. There were 21 stocks advancing against 29 stocks declining on the index.
The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 4.82%, Titan Company up by 2.75%, HCL Technologies up by 1.78%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.69% and TCS up by 1.67%. On the flip side, Hindalco Industries down by 3.23%, Shriram Finance down by 2.83%, Power Grid down by 2.01%, JSW Steel down by 1.65% and Bajaj Finance down by 1.56% were the top losers.
All Asian markets were trading lower; Nikkei 225 slipped 3787.9 points or 6.2% to 57,290.00, Taiwan Weighted lost 1837.15 points or 4.42% to 39,737.57, KOSPI dropped 286.66 points or 5.32% to 5,097.14, Hang Seng declined 274.98 points or 1.12% to 24,522.00, Jakarta Composite plunged 97.7 points or 1.94% to 4,932.56, Shanghai Composite weakened 42.01 points or 1.14% to 3,647.90 and Straits Times fell 8.38 points or 0.16% to 5,171.08.