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Post Session: Quick Review
Dec-18-2025

Indian equity benchmarks ended flat with negative bias on Sensex weekly expiry day of derivative contracts. After making a weak start, soon indices turned positive as traders took some support amid renewed foreign investor buying and CareEdge Ratings' latest report estimating India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 7.5% in FY26 and 7.0% in FY27. However, in the final leg of trade, markets erased intra-day gains and settled just below the neutral lines.

Some of the important factors in trade:

India’s GDP to grow at 7.5% in FY26: Traders took note of CareEdge Ratings' latest report estimating India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 7.5% in FY26 and 7.0% in FY27.  Besides, nominal GDP growth is projected at 8.3%, lower than the budgeted 10.1% for FY26. 

India, Oman trade pact to boost exports of petroleum, machinery & other products: Traders paid no heed towards Think tank GTRI’s statement that the free trade pact between India and Oman, slated to be signed on December 18, will provide greater market access to domestic products such as petroleum, machinery, rice, iron and steel articles.

Fresh foreign fund inflows: Traders overlooked Foreign Institutional Investors purchased equities worth Rs 1,171.71 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.  

Global front: European markets were trading in green, ahead of interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England. Asian markets ended mostly in red ahead to the Bank of Japan's policy meeting conclusion on Friday, with the central bank expected to raise interest rates to the highest level in three decades.

The BSE Sensex ended at 84481.81, down by 77.84 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 84238.43 and 84780.19. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended mixed; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.05%, while Small cap index was down by 0.28%. (Provisional)

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 1.10%, TECK up by 0.62%, Realty up by 0.33%, Metal up by 0.17% and Consumer Durables up by 0.13%, while Power down by 1.01%, Oil & Gas down by 0.81%, Capital Goods down by 0.80%, Utilities down by 0.75% and Industrials down by 0.66% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional) 

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS up by 1.94%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.72%, Infosys up by 1.51%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone up by 0.66% and Axis Bank up by 0.48%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 2.74%, Tata Steel down by 1.26%, Power Grid Corp down by 1.15%, Asian Paints down by 0.89% and NTPC down by 0.82% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal has expressed optimism over the growth of India’s domestic pharmaceutical market, with expectations for market to double to approximately $130 billion by 2030 from the current level of around $60 billion. He said this reflects the sector’s scale, depth, and innovation potential.

On the trade front, Agrawal highlighted that pharmaceutical exports from India grew 9.4 percent to $30.47 billion in 2024-25 over the previous year, on the back of a strong manufacturing base and expanding global outreach. Indian medicines reach over 200 markets worldwide, with more than 60 percent of exports going to stringent regulatory destinations. The United States accounts for about 34 percent, while Europe accounts for around 19 percent of India’s pharmaceutical exports.

Agrawal further underlined that India is today the world’s third-largest pharmaceutical producer by volume and fourteenth by value, with more than 3,000 companies, 10,500 manufacturing units and over 60,000 generic brands across 60 therapeutic areas. The Commerce Secretary also underlined the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to position India as a trusted global trade partner and to expand India’s share in global pharmaceutical trade, thereby enabling wider access to quality and affordable healthcare across the world. 

The CNX Nifty ended at 25815.55, down by 3.00 points or 0.01% after trading in a range of 25726.30 and 25902.35. There were 25 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index, while one stock remained unchanged. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Interglobe Aviation up by 2.71%, TCS up by 1.96%, Max Healthcare up by 1.69%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.66% and Infosys up by 1.55%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 2.62%, Tata Steel down by 1.30%, Power Grid Corp down by 1.21%, Asian Paints down by 0.93% and NTPC down by 0.86% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading higher; Germany’s DAX gained 108.31 points or 0.45% to 24,068.90, France’s CAC rose 29.45 points or 0.36% to 8,115.50 and UK’s FTSE 100 increased 24.98 points or 0.26% to 9,799.30.

Asian markets settled mostly lower on Thursday tracking Wall Street’s fall overnight on concerns about lofty valuations for technology shares. Meanwhile, investors braced for key US inflation reading later in the day that could influence the Federal Reserve's rate trajectory in the new year. Japan's Nikkei hit three-week lows as investors positioned ahead of the Bank of Japan's policy meeting, where markets widely expect a 25-basis point rate hike to 0.75%. However, Chinese shares gained marginally as cash-strapped China Vanke kicked off a second meeting with bond holders to extend its debt payments and avoid a default.

Asian Indices

Last Trade            

Change in Points

Change in %      

Shanghai Composite

3,876.37

6.09

0.16

Hang Seng

25,498.13

29.35

0.12

Jakarta Composite

8,618.20

-59.15

-0.69

KLSE Composite

1,646.90

5.46

0.33

Nikkei 225

49,001.50

-510.78

-1.03

Straits Times

4,570.61

-4.87

-0.11

KOSPI Composite

3,994.51

-61.90

-1.53

Taiwan Weighted

27,468.53

-56.64

-0.21
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