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Markets trade higher in early deals amid continued fall in crude oil prices
Sep-23-2026

Indian equity benchmarks made a positive start on Wednesday as continued fall in crude oil prices supported the sentiments. Crude oil dropped for a second straight session and traded below $100 per barrel mark on expectations of diplomatic solution to the US-Iran ‌war through talks at the UN in New York. Moreover, Saudi Arabia began restoring crude supply on a critical pipeline to the Red Sea.

Sensex and Nifty were trading higher with modest gains in early deals on account of value buying. Broad-based sectoral advances, led by metals stocks, helped to offset losses in the IT sector. Meanwhile, traders are eyeing the release of the HSBC Flash PMI data, to be out later in the day.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed, but tech stocks were witnessing buying interest over optimism around Meta Platforms Inc.’s new artificial intelligence agent. Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei was closed on account of holiday.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 74703.21, up by 174.13 points or 0.23% after trading in a range of 74617.09 and 74812.74. There were 24 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.06%, Basic Materials up by 1.05%, Realty up by 0.90%, FMCG up by 0.83% and Industrials up by 0.67%, while IT down by 0.28%, TECK down by 0.20% and Auto down by 0.01% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finance up by 2.06%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.51%, Tata Steel up by 1.38%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.21% and Larsen & Toubro up by 0.95%. On the flip side, TCS down by 0.61%, Infosys down by 0.56%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.40%, ICICI Bank down by 0.26% and HDFC Bank down by 0.25% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, S&P Global Ratings, in its Asia-Pacific Economic Outlook, has raised its forecast for India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2027 (FY27), to 7.0%, from 6.6% previously. It said several factors drove growth above its expectations in the June quarter, including robust industrial activity, healthy consumption, strong goods exports, and an acceleration in government investment.

The ratings agency expects growth to moderate in the second half of the fiscal year as the tailwinds from Goods and Services Tax (GST) rationalisation and income-tax cuts fade. It said weather-related risks also warrant close monitoring. Cumulative rainfall was 15% below normal as of September 9, 2026, during the current monsoon season. Therefore, it said agricultural output and food inflation remain key variables to watch.

On inflation, the ratings agency expects consumer inflation to average 5.1% during the fiscal year and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to raise its policy rate by 25 basis points (bps). It expects the balance of considerations to shift towards higher interest rates, citing solid economic growth, persistent inflationary pressures, the unresolved conflict in West Asia, and weather-related risks as factors supporting such a shift.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23378.00, up by 49.00 points or 0.21% after trading in a range of 23351.75 and 23414.55. There were 33 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finance up by 2.00%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.73%, JSW Steel up by 1.41%, Tata Steel up by 1.23% and Hindalco Industries up by 1.17%. On the flip side, SBI Life Insurance down by 0.64%, Wipro down by 0.62%, Coal India down by 0.62%, TCS down by 0.53% and Infosys down by 0.52% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Taiwan Weighted surged 227.72 points or 0.48% to 48,027.89, Jakarta Composite rose 31.65 points or 0.5% to 6,308.69 and KOSPI increased 31.25 points or 0.45% to 7,049.16. On the other hand, Hang Seng declined 201.75 points or 0.81% to 24,886.00, Shanghai Composite fell 14.05 points or 0.36% to 3,938.08 and Straits Times was down by 1.32 points or 0.02% to 5,724.97.
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