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Indian markets trade near intraday low points in early afternoon deals
Oct-23-2026

Extending their losses, Indian equity benchmarks traded near their intraday low points in early afternoon deals, despite positive Flash PMI data. Both the Sensex and Nifty remained under selling pressure. Rising crude oil prices and escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East dampened investor sentiment. The Nifty underperformed the Sensex, with small-cap and mid-cap stocks witnessing significant declines. 

Traders paid no heed towards reports that India's private sector business activity signalled continued growth in October, supported by stronger new orders and easing inflationary pressures. According to the data report, the HSBC Flash India PMI Composite Output Index - a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-month change in the combined output of India's manufacturing and service sectors - rose to 56.7 in October from final reading of 55.9 in September.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, after Japan's private sector expanded at a solid pace in October as services activity picked up, while manufacturing growth slowed to a seven-month low. At 52.3, the composite output index was unchanged from September. The private sector activity expanded for the nineteenth consecutive month but the rate of growth was the joint-lowest since May.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 72519.61, down by 729.78 points or 1.00% after trading in a range of 72487.47 and 73766.51. There were 4 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities down by 3.82%, Power down by 3.78%, Realty down by 3.66%, Capital Goods down by 3.55% and Metal down by 3.53%, while there were no gaining sectoral indices on the BSE. 

The top gainers on the Sensex were Eternal up by 2.18%, TCS up by 1.40%, Infosys up by 0.64% and Larsen & Toubro up by 0.54%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 4.51%, Adani Ports & SEZ down by 3.13%, Trent down by 2.88%, Titan Company down by 2.80% and Interglobe Aviation down by 2.69% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways (MoPSW) Sarbananda Sonowal urged Polish companies to ‘build, innovate and invest in India’ rather than only sell to it, as he pitched the country's growth story to business leaders from both nations. He recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Poland in August 2024 lifted ties to a strategic partnership.

Sonowal said India offers the scale of a large and growing market, the skills of a young and talented workforce, and the trust of a democracy committed to reform, enterprise and openness. He argued that the two economies fit together. He said Poland has strengths in engineering, machinery, mining technologies, transport, environmental solutions and advanced manufacturing. India has the market, talent and manufacturing base to give those capabilities scale.

The minister cited that India, under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has set an ambitious target to generate 500 GW of non-fossil fuel power capacity by 2030, to put forth a strong Climate Action step by the country. He put the investment needed at roughly 280 billion to 300 billion euros, with openings for equipment makers, storage, power grids, green hydrogen, recycling and environmental technology. He added that Poland's experience in mining, critical minerals and clean energy could help.

On technology, he noted that Indian IT companies have made Poland a base for their European operations and employ about 10,000 people there. He said the next step should go beyond IT services, into artificial intelligence, quantum computing, 5G applications, digital infrastructure, smart manufacturing and space. He proposed a Startup Bridge, an Innovation Corridor and an AI and Quantum Dialogue to link businesses, researchers and innovators in both countries. Trade between the two countries has reached $6.36 billion, and Indian investment in Poland exceeds $3 billion. Polish companies are also active in India in packaging, manufacturing, waste-to-energy and electric mobility. He said the ambition should be larger than doubling trade by 2030.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22395.60, down by 292.05 points or 1.29% after trading in a range of 22389.35 and 22787.25. There were 4 stocks advancing against 46 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Eternal up by 2.25%, TCS up by 0.89%, Infosys up by 0.27% and ONGC up by 0.07%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 4.96%, Tata Motors Passenger down by 3.69%, Adani Ports & SEZ down by 3.45%, Shriram Finance down by 3.41% and JIO Financial Serv. down by 3.41% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Shanghai Composite strengthened 32.45 points or 0.88% to 3,690.48, Hang Seng advanced 177.32 points or 0.77% to 23,112.00, Jakarta Composite gained 37.26 points or 0.69% to 5,425.17, KOSPI increased 16.53 points or 0.3% to 5,550.30 and Straits Times rose 2.96 points or 0.05% to 5,418.10, while Nikkei 225 slipped 320.84 points or 0.51% to 62,587.00.
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