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Bourses add some points in early afternoon session
Feb-17-2026

Indian markets added some points in early afternoon session led by gains in IT and TECK sector’s stocks. Developments in the India- US trade deal improved the markets sentiments. Traders took some support after report stated that trade agreements with the US and the 27-nation bloc European Union (EU) have opened up an opportunity of $400 billion for India's agriculture sector. Besides, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal has said that in the coming week, an Indian officials’ team will visit the US to finalise the legal text for an interim trade agreement, which is expected to be signed in March. On the global front, Japan’s Nikkei 225 was trading lower as Japan's tertiary activity index decreased for the second straight month in December. The seasonally adjusted tertiary activity index fell 0.5 percent on a monthly basis, following a 0.4 percent decline in November. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 83569.02, up by 291.87 points or 0.35% after trading in a range of 82987.43 and 83588.89. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index, while one stock remained unchanged.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 3.04%, TECK up by 2.10%, Consumer Durables up by 0.90%, FMCG up by 0.71% and Industrials was up by 0.70%, while Metal down by 1.10%, Oil & Gas down by 0.47%, Energy down by 0.46%, Basic Materials down by 0.31% and Power was down by 0.30% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 4.57%, HCL Tech up by 3.09%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.29%, ITC up by 2.23% and Asian Paints up by 1.89%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 2.34%, Trent down by 1.85%, Tata Steel down by 1.31%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.87% and Power Grid down by 0.85% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in its Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) has showed the unemployment rate among people aged 15 and above grew moderately to 5% in the month of January 2026 from 4.8% in December 2025. Besides, the survey highlighted that the decline in lower labour force participation rate (LFPR) and Worker Population Ratio (WPR), and rise in unemployment rate was primarily rural-driven, with seasonal factors, post-harvest slack, and discouragement effects playing a key role.

During January, the unemployment rate across both Urban and Rural India saw a moderate increase. In Rural India, the unemployment rate inched up to 4.2% in January 2026 from 3.9% in December 2025, while it rose to 7.0% in January 2026 across Urban India from 6.7% in December 2025. The joblessness continued to remain stable among males, while it was higher among females in January 2026 than in December 2025. The unemployment rate among females remained within the range observed during the period April to December 2025, indicating a short-term increase rather than a significant weakening of female labour market conditions. 

The overall LFPR among persons of age 15 years and above declined to 55.9% in January 2026 from 56.1% in December 2025. The LFPR in Rural India dropped to 58.7% in January 2026 from 59.0% in December 2025. In contrast, the LFPR in Urban India grew to 50.3 in January 2026 from 50.2% in December 2025. Meanwhile, overall WPR among those aged 15 years and above exhibited a broad stability in January 2026. 

Following a gradual increase in rural WPR since June 2025 (53.3%) to December 2025 (56.7%), it declined marginally to 56.2% in January 2026. In rural areas, male and female WPR stood at 75.7% and 38.0%, respectively, in January as against the respective figures of 76.0% and 38.6% in the preceding month. Urban WPR remained stable across genders with 70.5% for males, 23.0% for females and 46.8% at overall level in January.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25747.40, up by 64.65 points or 0.25% after trading in a range of 25570.30 and 25751.10. There were 25 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Infosys up by 4.68%, HCL Tech up by 3.07%, Wipro up by 2.47%, ITC up by 2.26% and Tech Mahindra up by 2.17%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 2.49%, Trent down by 1.90%, Hindalco down by 1.88%, Shriram Finance down by 1.75% and Tata Steel down by 1.32% were the top losers.

On the global front, Nikkei 225 slipped 424.41 points or 0.75% to 56,382.00.
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