HOME > MARKETS > MARKET COMMENTARY
  MARKET COMMENTARY
EQUITY
Weakness persists over Dalal Street
Feb-13-2026

Weakness persisted over the Dalal Street in morning session, led by steep losses in IT stocks amid weak global cues and persistent concerns over artificial intelligence-led disruptions which weighed on investor sentiment. However, traders overlooked India’s retail inflation data which stood at 2.75 per cent in January under the new series of All India Consumer Price Index (CPI), with 2024 as the base year. Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran said that the new CPI series will improve the quality of data used in formulating monetary and fiscal policies. The new series has captured more goods and services items, and excluded those which are not consumed presently. Sector-wise, power stocks remained in watch as Union Minister Shripad Naik said legacy dues in the power sector have been brought down from Rs 1.40 lakh crore in June 2022 to just Rs 4,109 crore in February, supported by the government's initiatives. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red as traders are looking ahead to US consumer price index report later in the day that may shed additional light on the US Fed's outlook for rates.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 82925.20, down by 749.72 points or 0.90% after trading in a range of 82771.75 and 83079.70. There were 2 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index.

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were IT down by 3.60%, Realty down by 2.97%, TECK down by 2.61%, Metal down by 2.49% and Basic Materials down by 1.86%, while there were no gaining sectoral indices on the BSE. 

The only gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finance up by 0.66% and HDFC Bank up by 0.36%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 4.84%, TCS down by 3.79%, Eternal down by 3.54%, HCL Technologies down by 3.42% and Hindustan Unilever down by 2.16% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said that India will receive preferential duty access for garments made using American yarn and cotton under its trade agreement with the US, much like the benefits currently granted to Bangladesh. The US will lower reciprocal tariffs on Bangladeshi goods to 19 per cent, with garments qualifying for zero duty only if they are made using US cotton and man-made fibers.

A Bangladeshi garment now faces a 31 per cent levy (12 per cent for most-favoured nation plus 19 per cent reciprocal), and if it uses US fibres, then duty falls to 12 per cent. He mentioned if an Indian company procures yarn forward and cotton forward from the US, manufactures garments, and re-exports to the US, those garments will also receive duty-free access in America, just like Bangladeshi firms. He said that is there in that US-Bangladesh agreement, and it will be in India-US agreement also. He added that it will not have any impact on Indian cotton farmers. 

Further, he said that cotton production in the US is constrained, with exports amounting to only $5 million, while India's target stands at $50 billion. In trade agreements, ‘yarn forward’ and ‘cotton forward’ are rules of origin (RoO) requiring specific production steps within the free trade area (FTA) to qualify for duty-free benefits, ensuring the final apparel uses materials sourced from FTA partners, boosting regional manufacturing. The benefit for the apparel sector will flow after India and the US sign the legal agreement for an interim trade deal by mid-March.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25567.30, down by 239.90 points or 0.93% after trading in a range of 25513.30 and 25630.35. There were 7 stocks advancing against 43 stocks declining on the index. 

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finance up by 1.04%, Bharat Electronics up by 0.43%, SBI Life Insurance up by 0.37%, HDFC Bank up by 0.28% and Eicher Motors up by 0.26%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 4.76%, Hindalco down by 4.70%, TCS down by 3.49%, Eternal down by 3.29% and ONGC down by 3.15% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 405.84 points or 0.7% to 57,234.00, Jakarta Composite plunged 46.78 points or 0.57% to 8,218.57, Shanghai Composite weakened 24.93 points or 0.6% to 4,109.09, Hang Seng declined 536.54 points or 1.98% to 26,496.00 and Straits Times fell 66.67 points or 1.33% to 4,950.09, while KOSPI increased 43.00 points or 0.78% to 5,565.27.
  RELATED NEWS >>
Most Viewed >>
EXPLORE
© CITRUS INTERACTIVE
Designed & Developed Accord Fintech Pvt. Ltd.