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Markets relinquish gains in late trade
Oct-23-2025

Indian equity markets relinquished gains in late trade as US sanctions on Russian oil companies have weighed on the trading sentiments. However, markets continued to trade well above the unchanged lines amid optimism over India-US bilateral trade deal. The reports suggested that India and the United States are close to finalizing a long-awaited bilateral trade deal that could sharply lower tariffs on Indian exports to about 15% to 16% from the current average of 50%. Besides, investors remained hopeful of festive season demand, coupled with recent tax cuts and policy support, to lift corporate profits in the second half of FY26.  

On the sectoral front, Asian equity markets were trading mixed as investors remained worried amid rising tensions between the United States and China, and mixed earnings. European equity markets were trading mostly in green as traders digested a wave of corporate earnings.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 84688.66, up by 262.32 points or 0.31% after trading in a range of 84659.36 and 85290.06. There were 19 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green and red; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.24%, while Small cap index was down by 0.15%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 2.64%, TECK up by 1.53%, Realty up by 0.78%, Metal up by 0.53% and Bankex up by 0.45%, while Telecom down by 0.47%, Healthcare down by 0.22%, Energy down by 0.07%, Consumer Discretionary down by 0.07% and Utilities down by 0.07% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 4.31%, HCL Technologies up by 2.77%, TCS up by 2.39%, Axis Bank up by 1.82% and Larsen & Toubro up by 1.41%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 3.02%, ICICI Bank down by 1.45%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.37%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.35% and Adani Ports & SEZ down by 1.03% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, an article published in the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) October Bulletin has said that India's steel sector faced significant headwinds due to cheap imports and dumping from major global steel producers during 2023-24 and 2024-25. It called for policy support to boost the competitiveness of domestic steel production. It noted that steel imports have seen a surge, largely driven by lower import prices. This has adversely impacted the domestic steel production. It said the dumping of cheap steel from global producers may pose a risk to the domestic steel production, which can be mitigated through suitable policy measures. The recent initiative to impose the safeguard duty provides insulation against the import dumping. 

The article said steel imports increased from China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Vietnam during 2024-25. Further, it said India's steel consumption grew by 12.9 per cent on average (average of monthly growth rates) from April 2022 to November 2024. The gap between domestic consumption and production has widened since 2022. It noted that steel prices have eased since April 2022, both on the domestic and global fronts. In recent times, India's steel sector has encountered challenges due to increased imports and competitive pricing from major steel-producing countries. It noted that these factors have affected domestic market share, lowered capacity utilisation, and added pressure on domestic producers and the pricing strategies of exporting nations remain a concern for the steel industry. It said addressing these challenges calls for a balanced approach, including policy support and initiatives to enhance the competitiveness of India's steel production through innovation, cost efficiency, and sustainable practices.

It further said India imported steel products to supplement its consumption demand. The country’s iron and steel imports grew by 10.7 per cent in the first half of the 2024-25 financial year, mainly due to safeguard duties. India recorded a 22 per cent growth in its steel imports in 2023-24, fuelled by softer steel prices in the international market. India imports nearly 45 per cent of steel from the top five destinations -- South Korea (import share 14.6 per cent), China (9.8 per cent), the US (7.8 per cent), Japan (7.1 per cent) and the UK (6.2 per cent). The central bank said the views expressed in the article are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of the Reserve Bank of India.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25939.05, up by 70.45 points or 0.27% after trading in a range of 25925.75 and 26104.20. There were 29 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Infosys up by 4.30%, HCL Technologies up by 2.95%, TCS up by 2.41%, Shriram Finance up by 2.32% and ONGC up by 1.79%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 3.03%, Interglobe Aviation down by 1.62%, ICICI Bank down by 1.44%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.38% and Eicher Motors down by 1.35% were the top losers.

Asian equity markets were trading mixed; Hang Seng advanced 131.23 points or 0.51% to 25,913.00, Straits Times rose 13.67 points or 0.31% to 4,407.59, Shanghai Composite strengthened 8.65 points or 0.22% to 3,922.41 and Jakarta Composite gained 111.89 points or 1.35% to 8,264.44, while Nikkei 225 slipped 636.79 points or 1.31% to 48,671.00, Taiwan Weighted lost 116.65 points or 0.42% to 27,532.26 and KOSPI dropped 38.12 points or 0.99% to 3,845.56.

European equity markets were trading mostly in green; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 41.64 points or 0.44% to 9,556.64 and France’s CAC rose 19.43 points or 0.24% to 8,226.30, while Germany’s DAX lost 97.03 points or 0.4% to 24,054.10.
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