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Bourses remain sluggish in early afternoon session
Jan-05-2026

Indian markets traded flat in early afternoon session. Sensex traded in red, while Nifty traded in green. Traders were cautious ahead of the quarterly earnings season. Investors took note of report that Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is all set to visit Brussels this week for talks with his EU counterpart on the proposed free trade agreement (FTA), which has entered its final negotiation phase. The two-day visit is scheduled for January 8, 2026- January 9, 2026. Sector wise, coal sector remained in limelight as India’s coal production from captive and commercial mines rose 5.75% on year-on-year basis to 19.48 million tonnes (MT) in December 2025 compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. On the global front, all Asian markets were trading higher despite China's service sector expanded moderately in December, albeit at a slower pace, as growth in new orders softened the most in six months. The headline RatingDog China Purchasing Managers' Index posted 52.0 in December, down from 52.1 in the previous month.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 85732.16, down by 29.85 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 85516.75 and 85883.50. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.29%, while Small cap index up by 0.23%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 1.70%, Consumer Durables up by 1.47%, Auto up by 0.70%, Basic Materials up by 0.64% and Capital Goods was up by 0.56%, while IT down by 1.12%, TECK down by 0.90%, Oil & Gas down by 0.74%, Energy down by 0.46% and Telecom was down by 0.35% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharat Electronics up by 3.08%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.66%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.65%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.61% and Asian Paints up by 1.61%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 2.14%, HCL Tech down by 1.91%, HDFC Bank down by 1.79%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.02% and Eternal down by 0.97% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, to accelerate the process, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is all set to visit Brussels this week for talks with his EU counterpart on the proposed free trade agreement (FTA), which has entered its final negotiation phase. The two-day visit is scheduled for January 8, 2026- January 9, 2026. During the visit, Goyal will meet the Executive Vice-President and European Commissioner for Trade of the European Union, Maros Sefcovic. 

On January 7, 2026, the minister will first visit Liechtenstein to hold talks on ways to boost trade and investments between the two countries. Liechtenstein is a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Goyal's Brussels visit comes at a crucial stage in the ongoing India-EU FTA negotiations, as both sides intensify efforts to conclude a comprehensive, balanced, and mutually beneficial trade agreement at the earliest. 

The 16th round of India-EU FTA negotiations, held from December 3, 2025 to December 9, 2025, covered critical chapters such as goods, services, investment, rules of origin, and technical barriers to trade. India and EFTA implemented a free trade agreement on October 1, 2025. EFTA members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. India and the EU resumed FTA negotiations in June 2022 after a gap of over eight years. The talks were stalled in 2013 due to differences on the level of opening up markets.

India bilateral merchandise trade with the European Union (EU) stood at $136.53 billion in 2024-25, with exports worth $75.85 billion and imports of $60.68 billion, making it the largest trading partner for goods. The EU market accounts for about 17 per cent of India's total exports, and the bloc's exports to India constitute 9 per cent of its total overseas shipments. Besides demanding significant duty cuts in automobiles and medical devices, the EU wants tax reduction in products like wine, spirits, meat, poultry, and a strong intellectual property regime.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 26333.40, up by 4.85 points or 0.02% after trading in a range of 26263.60 and 26373.20. There were 32 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharat Electronics up by 3.05%, Nestle up by 2.72%, Eicher Motors up by 1.84%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.61% and Asian Paints up by 1.59%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 2.10%, HCL Tech down by 1.91%, HDFC Bank down by 1.82%, ONGC down by 1.78% and Wipro down by 1.64% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading higher; Nikkei 225 surged 1676.52 points or 3.22% to 52,016.00, Taiwan Weighted added 755.23 points or 2.51% to 30,105.04, KOSPI increased 147.89 points or 3.32% to 4,457.52, Jakarta Composite gained 67.33 points or 0.77% to 8,815.46, Shanghai Composite strengthened 54.58 points or 1.38% to 4,023.42, Straits Times rose 32.46 points or 0.7% to 4,688.58 and Hang Seng was up by 23.53 points or 0.09% to 26,362.00.
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