Barometers pare losses; Nifty trades above 25,850 mark

Key equity benchmarks recovered from early losses to trade marginally higher by mid-morning, though market sentiment remained cautious as the indices headed toward a fourth straight session of weakness. Uncertainty over a potential U.S.India trade agreement continued to dampen investor risk appetite. However, sentiment may find some relief from a rebound in the rupee and early indications of renewed foreign investor inflows.

The Nifty traded above the 25,850 mark. Meanwhile, media shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.

At 11:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 85 points or 0.10% to 84,644.65. The Nifty 50 index added 35.50 points or 0.13% to 25,852.65.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.12% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.17%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,510 shares rose and 2,291 shares fell. A total of 186 shares were unchanged.

IPO Update:

KSH International received bids for 44,31,687 shares as against 1,36,16,438 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 11:15 IST on Thursday (18 December 2025). The issue was subscribed 0.33 times. The issue opened for bidding on 16 December 2025 and it will close on 18 December 2025. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 365 and 384 per share.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Media index slipped 1.01% to 1,396.80. The index fell 2.70% in the two consecutive trading sessions.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises (down 1.87%), Tips Music (down 1.79%), PVR Inox (down 1.56%), Nazara Technologies (down 1.5%), Hathway Cable & Datacom (down 0.81%), Network 18 Media & Investments (down 0.65%), D B Corp (down 0.43%), Saregama India (down 0.25%) and Sun TV Network (down 0.14%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Aurobindo Pharma rose 0.83%. The company said that the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) has completed the inspection of APL Healthcares Unit-IV, wholly owned subsidiary, located at Palchur village, Andhra Pradesh (AP).

AstraZeneca Pharma India shed 0.36%. The company has received government approval to import, sell, and distribute Datopotamab Deruxtecan (brand name Datverzo) in a 100 mg infusion format.

Antony Waste Handling Cell zoomed 16.39% after its subsidiary, AG Enviro Infra Projects, has bagged two contracts for collection & transportation of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Mumbai by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

United Drilling Tools added 1.92% after the company announced that it has secured an order worth Rs 4.05 crore from Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) for the supply of gas lift valves and side pocket mandrels.

Global Markets:

Most Asian stocks fell on Thursday, led by renewed weakness in technology stocks as lingering concerns over stretched artificial intelligence valuations resurfaced. Investor sentiment was further dampened by expectations of a hawkish stance from the Bank of Japan, adding to regional market pressure.

Artificial intelligence-related stocks dragged indexes after a media report stated that Oracles primary investor, Blue Owl Capital, has pulled out from funding one of its data center projects.

Over in Asia, the Bank of Japan will kick off its two-day meeting, with the central bank expected to raise rates to 0.75% Friday, its highest level in 30 years.

Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes fell, with the S&P 500 down 1.16%, and the Nasdaq Composite seeing the largest loss of 1.81%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.47%.

Traders are awaiting the release of the U.S. consumer price index reading for November, due Thursday morning. It will mark the first consumer inflation report issued to the public since the government shutdown ended last month. Media reports stated that the headline inflation is expected to have grown at a pace of 3.1% on a year-over-year basis.

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