Barometers trades sideways; European markets edge higher

The domestic equity benchmarks traded sideways in the afternoon trade amid profit booking and mixed cues from global markets as cautious investor sentiment overshadowed optimism over the conclusion of the IndiaEU free trade agreement (FTA) and positive economic data. Participants are keeping a close watch on the rupees movement, ongoing Q3 corporate earnings, and evolving geopolitical developments.

Investors are also awaiting quarterly results from ITC, Tata Motors, and Vedanta, due later today, along with the upcoming Union Budget 2026 scheduled for February 1, 2026. Meanwhile, the Nifty traded below the 25,350 mark. Metal, private bank and oil & gas shares advanced, while auto, FMCG and healthcare shares corrected.

 

At 13:26 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex added 31.52 points or 0.04% to 82,376.20. The Nifty 50 index shed 10.15 points or 0.06% to 25,332.60.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index jumped 1.56% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index surged 2.06%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,494 shares rose and 2,593 shares fell. A total of 165 shares were unchanged.

Gainers & Losers:

Larsen & Toubro (up 3.84%), NTPC (up 2.64%), Tata Steel (up 2.43%), Hindalco Industries (up 2.37%) and Axis Bank (up 2.33%) were the major Nifty50 gainers.

SBI Life Insurance Company (down 4.08%), Asian Paints (down 3.53%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 2.87%), InterGlobe Aviation (down 2.82%) and Maruti Suzuki India (down 2.79%) were the major Nifty50 losers.

Economy:

Indias industrial production rose to a 26-month high of 7.8% in December, up from 7.2% in November, according to data released by the government on January 28. The sharp pickup was driven by a broad-based acceleration across manufacturing, capital goods and infrastructure-linked segments, signalling resilient momentum at the end of the calendar year.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Larsen & Toubro added 3.91% after the company reported a 17.78% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 2,832.08 crore on 8.34% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 37,902.84 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

Sagility fell 3.79%. The company reported a 23.4% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 267.66 crore on a 35.7% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 1,971.15 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

ASK Automotive advanced 2.06% after the company reported an 21.29% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 79.92 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 65.89 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations increased 18.48% YoY to Rs 1,084.22 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2025.

Gland Pharma surged 7.40% after the company reported 27.7% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 261.48 crore on a 22.5% rise in net sales to Rs 1695.36 crore in Q3 FY26 as compared with Q3 FY25.

Cochin Shipyard rose 0.39%. The company reported an 18.3% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 144.67 crore on a 17.7% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 1,350.41 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers gained 2.16% after the company reported 74% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 171 crore in Q3 FY26 from Rs 98 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations increased to Rs 1,896 crore during the period under review, up 49% YoY.

Maharashtra Seamless added 0.71%. The company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 242.65 crore in Q3 FY26, up 30.41% as against Rs 186.06 crore in Q3 FY25. However, total revenue declined 8.48% year on year (YoY) to Rs 1,290.24 crore in Q3 FY26.

Global Markets:

Most European markets traded higher on Thursday as traders focused on a raft of earnings reports from some of Europes biggest companies.

Asian market advanced as technology shares eased after recent gains, with investors digesting mixed mega-cap tech earnings on Wall Street and the Federal Reserves decision to keep rates unchanged.

Investors will be keeping an eye on developments in Indonesia after the benchmark Jakarta Composite plunged over 8% on Wednesday after index provider MSCI had issued a statement warning of a potential downgrade of the country to frontier-market status.

Meanwhile, Singapores central bank left its monetary policy unchanged Thursday, while warning of upside risks to inflation and demand as the city-states economic outlook stays resilient. The countrys benchmark Straits Times Index inched 0.19% higher.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 reached a milestone level, hitting 7,000 for the first time, before pulling back as the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and upped its economic growth assessment.

The broad market index ended the day down 0.01% at 6,978.03. Earlier, the S&P 500 was up 0.3% on the day, hitting an all-time intraday high of 7,002.28.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.02% to close at 49,015.60. The Nasdaq Composite outperformed and gained 0.17%, settling at 23,857.45.

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