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Sensex, Nifty continue muted trade in early afternoon deals
Aug-21-2026

In a highly volatile session, Indian equity benchmarks remained muted during early afternoon deals, amid continued stress in global bond markets. Persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East were also weighing on sentiment. However, trade remained in green terrain, as traders got some relief, after India's private sector activity edged slightly higher in the month of August 2026, amid a slightly stronger increase in new order volumes, although the pace of growth was subdued compared with the trend observed over recent years.

Both, Sensex and Nifty, were trading with a cautious bias, hovering near their neutral lines after opening higher. The indices were struggling to build on Thursday’s recovery as higher oil prices and global risk-off concerns weighed on market sentiment. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, after overall consumer prices in Japan were up 1.9 percent on year in July. That exceeded expectations for an increase of 1.8 percent following the downwardly revised 1.6 percent gain in June (originally 1.7 percent.)

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 77575.45, up by 37.73 points or 0.05% after trading in a range of 77445.86 and 77725.67. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 0.77%, Power up by 0.69%, Industrials up by 0.40%, Telecom up by 0.36% and Bankex up by 0.36%, while FMCG down by 0.68%, Healthcare down by 0.59%, Auto down by 0.53%, Oil & Gas down by 0.23% and Consumer Disc down by 0.14% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid up by 2.66%, Bharat Electronics up by 1.24%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.14%, NTPC up by 0.78% and TCS up by 0.58%. On the flip side, Interglobe Aviation down by 1.14%, Hindustan Unilever down by 0.99%, Maruti Suzuki India down by 0.86%, Trent down by 0.78% and Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.66% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, highlighting drivers which will shape India's forex markets in the coming decade, RBI Deputy Governor Rohit Jain has said that local currencies will play an ever-increasing role in cross-border trade and payments as they lower transaction costs, reduce currency mismatches, and improve settlement efficiency. He added that Special Rupee Vostro Account (SRVA) framework for invoicing, payment and settlement of international trade in rupees has been implemented keeping in view the evolving dynamics of India’s international trade. He pointed that the success of SRVA will depend on commercial viability, emphasis on trade settlement in local currencies, offering market-determined rates, and strengthening confidence in the settlement ecosystem.

He emphasized that markets are continuously evolving and parameters of their readiness are being regularly renewed according to the needs of the time. He added that Indian market would be ready for the next decade if it can help facilitate India's ever-increasing engagement with other countries, absorb shocks in a non-disruptive manner, serve the smallest user as efficiently as the biggest, and embrace new technology without vitiating the trust it has earned. Besides, he referred technology adoption across the customer chain as another driver to shape India's forex markets. He said that foreign exchange transactions of the next decade should be digital from origination to reporting. He added that artificial intelligence and machine learning can genuinely assist in document classification, anomaly detection and the identification of reporting inconsistencies.

He said that the Indian market faces certain challenges in realising its full potential. He added that participation remains skewed as public sector banks, which hold deep relationships with MSMEs and smaller corporates outside the metros, under-participate in forex derivatives relative to their balance sheet size. He suggested that expanding the market-maker base, raising public sector bank participation, and encouraging electronic platforms are necessary priorities to be pursued. He also highlighted that unauthorised entities offering online forex trading are seen to operate outside Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and Electronic Trading Platform (ETP) regulation altogether. He noted that RBI’s Alert List, cautionary advisories and awareness campaigns address this from the regulator's side, while the heavier responsibility rests with Foreign Exchange Dealers' Association of India (FEDAI) members and the banks who deal with the public every day.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24238.25, up by 6.40 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 24206.80 and 24284.05. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid up by 2.44%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.42%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.24%, Bharat Electronics up by 1.03% and NTPC up by 0.80%. On the flip side, Cipla down by 1.81%, JSW Steel down by 1.38%, Interglobe Aviation down by 1.37%, Maruti Suzuki India down by 1.12% and Sun Pharma down by 1.00% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Jakarta Composite gained 33.99 points or 0.52% to 6,535.58, KOSPI increased 60.37 points or 0.87% to 6,912.95, Taiwan Weighted added 290.55 points or 0.64% to 45,224.29, Hang Seng advanced 271.51 points or 1.06% to 25,970.00, Straits Times rose 5.22 points or 0.09% to 5,677.13 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 1.48 points or 0.04% to 3,905.20, while Nikkei 225 slipped 391.79 points or 0.6% to 65,825.00.
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