As of 9:22 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 116.63 points at 84,844.51, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped 33.70 points to 26,107.05.

Metals drag, select buying seen

Metal stocks led the decline in early trade, reflecting cautious global cues. Commenting on market action, Aakash Shah, Technical Research Analyst at Choice Equity Broking, said muted sentiment across Asian markets and profit-booking after recent consolidation were capping early momentum, though selective buying could emerge near key support levels.

Gainers and losers

Among the gainers, Eternal rose 1.42%, followed by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (up 1.37%). Bharat Electronics gained 1.20%, Bajaj Finance added 0.60%, and Titan Company advanced 0.44%.

On the downside, Tata Consultancy Services was the top laggard, falling over 3% in early deals. Tata Steel declined 1.71%, Tech Mahindra slipped 1.69%, Reliance Industries was down 1.15%, and Asian Paints fell 1.09%.

Fundamentals strong, near-term headwinds persist

Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said advanced estimates projecting FY26 GDP growth at 7.4% underscore the economy’s resilience despite tariff-related concerns. However, he noted that markets may not reflect these positives immediately due to uncertainty around a US–India trade deal and continued foreign institutional investor (FII) selling.

He added that while Indian large-cap valuations are reasonable, relatively cheaper valuations in other markets are limiting FII inflows. A shift in sentiment could occur, he said, if an ожидаемый (expected) Supreme Court verdict on reciprocal tariffs goes against former US President Donald Trump.

Overall, markets remained range-bound in early trade, balancing strong domestic fundamentals against global trade uncertainties.