Key gauges turn lower in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks erased initial gains and were trading marginally lower in morning deals, amid sluggish global market trends due to rising US-China trade tensions. Traders turned cautious as a private report lowered its growth forecast for India by 40 basis points to 6.1% for 2025-26 citing changes in trade and tariff policies. It also said it now expects a slower recovery in 2026-27, at 6.3%, compared to its earlier outlook of steady growth of 6.5%. However, losses remain capped as some support came with exchange data showing that foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned buyers after days of selling as they bought equities worth Rs 6,065.78 crore on Tuesday. Sector wise, railway stocks remained in watch as credit rating agency ICRA’s report stated that the Indian railway sector is expected to see a moderate revenue growth of 5 per cent in FY26, driven primarily by strong performance from wagon manufacturers, while construction entities in the sector may witness slower growth. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in red as tariff worries persist, with Nvidia warning that it would take a quarterly charge of about $5.5 billion tied to exporting H20 graphics processing units to China.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 76611.14, down by 123.75 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 76569.59 and 77000.63. There were 11 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.13%, while Small cap index was up by 0.21%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Bankex up by 0.55%, PSU up by 0.21%, Industrials up by 0.20%, Capital Goods up by 0.16% and Power up by 0.14%, while Metal down by 0.95%, Auto down by 0.69%, IT down by 0.69%, TECK down by 0.54% and Energy down by 0.34% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Indusind Bank up by 3.83%, Axis Bank up by 1.43%, Asian Paints up by 0.54%, SBI up by 0.41% and HDFC Bank up by 0.38%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 1.75%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.71%, Infosys down by 1.45%, Tata Steel down by 1.14% and Sun Pharma down by 1.08% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, credit rating agency ICRA in its latest report has said that the Indian railway sector is expected to see a moderate revenue growth of 5 per cent in FY26, driven primarily by strong performance from wagon manufacturers, while construction entities in the sector may witness slower growth. The report highlighted that the weighted average operating margins for the sector will remain healthy at around 12 per cent in FY26, supported by operating leverage benefits and stable input prices.

This comes amid sustained government investments in railway infrastructure, with the capital outlay increasing by 130 per cent over the past five years to Rs 2.52 lakh crore in 2025-26 (Budget Estimates). However, it stated budgetary support has grown only modestly by 2 per cent between FY24 and FY26, indicating a potential slowdown in funding momentum.

Suprio Banerjee, Vice President and Co-Group Head, Corporate Ratings, at ICRA, noted that railway sector entities have been key beneficiaries of the government’s push to improve connectivity and reduce logistics costs. Over the last three years, companies involved in rolling stock, wagon manufacturing, track infrastructure, and electrification have seen a robust 24 per cent compounded annual growth rate (CAGR).

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23291.05, down by 37.50 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 23277.00 and 23372.75. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Indusind Bank up by 3.77%, Trent up by 2.11%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.66%, Axis Bank up by 1.37% and Eicher Motors up by 1.14%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 1.90%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.67%, Eternal down by 1.66%, Bajaj Auto down by 1.44% and JSW Steel down by 1.37% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 331.53 points or 0.97% to 33,936.01, Taiwan Weighted lost 336.59 points or 1.7% to 19,521.08, Hang Seng declined 543.73 points or 2.6% to 20,922.54, KOSPI dropped 16.88 points or 0.68% to 2,460.53, Jakarta Composite plunged 1.72 points or 0.03% to 6,439.96 and Shanghai Composite weakened 30.06 points or 0.93% to 3,237.60.

On the flip side, Straits Times rose 10.07 points or 0.28% to 3,634.79.