Markets give thumbs up to trade deal: Sensex settles nearly 2,100 pts higher, Nifty ends above 25,700

The India VIX fell nearly 7 percent to around 12.9, reflecting a sharp cooling in near-term uncertainty after the trade-deal announcement and reinforcing the constructive tone in equities.

The Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices continued to outperform the benchmarks, both up close to 3 percent, highlighting strong risk appetite and broad-based buying beyond frontline stocks.

Most NSE sectoral indices were firmly in the green, led by realty (up nearly 4.8 percent), infrastructure, energy, pharma, and banking. Defensive FMCG stocks lagged but remained positive, while IT stocks posted more moderate gains compared with cyclicals.

The Nifty gainers’ list remained dominated by Adani Enterprises (up over 10 percent) and Adani Ports (up over 9 percent), alongside strong moves in Jio Financial, Bajaj Finance, and Bajaj Finserv, underscoring risk-on sentiment in both conglomerates and financial stocks.

Index heavyweights continued to provide strong support, with Reliance, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Adani Ports, and HDFC Bank emerging as the top positive contributors to the Nifty’s gains, together accounting for a significant portion of the index move.

After a volatile opening spike, both indices traded in a relatively tight range through the afternoon session, indicating consolidation rather than profit-taking. The Nifty has remained comfortably above the 25,700 mark, while the Sensex has held above 83,900.

Adani Enterprises reported a sharp jump of over 96x in Q3 profit, driven almost entirely by a one-time gain from its AWL stake sale. Net profit surged to Rs 5,627 crore, compared with Rs 58 crore a year ago, after booking a one-time gain of Rs 5,632.09 crore. On the operating front, performance was steadier rather than spectacular. Revenue rose 8.6 percent year-on-year to Rs 24,819.6 crore from Rs 22,848.4 crore, while EBITDA increased 18.6 percent to Rs 3,640.6 crore from Rs 3,070 crore. EBITDA margin improved to 14.7 percent, up from 13.4 percent last year, indicating modest operating leverage even as headline profit was inflated by the exceptional item.

Large-cap activity remained robust, with heavyweights dominating turnover. HDFC Bank led the value charts, trading over 42.6 million shares worth Rs 4,073 crore, up 2.35 percent, followed by Reliance Industries (Rs 2,937 crore, up 3.68 percent) and ICICI Bank (Rs 2,840 crore, up 2.88 percent). Among high-beta names, Adani Ports rose nearly 9 percent on turnover of Rs 1,604 crore, while Adani Enterprises jumped over 10 percent with Rs 1,336 crore changing hands. Broader participation was also visible in Eternal (over 68 million shares traded), InterGlobe Aviation (up 5.5 percent), and Larsen & Toubro, underscoring sustained risk appetite across financials, infrastructure and transport stocks.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, welcomed the India-US trade deal, calling it a “much awaited and significant milestone” that unlocks fresh opportunities for investment and growth. He added that the recent flurry of free trade agreements underlines India’s rising centrality in global economic frameworks, aimed at building more resilient international trade patterns.

Cyclical and rate-sensitive sectors continued to lead Tuesday’s rally, with BSE Realty jumping 4.93 percent, BSE Power up 4.22 percent, and BSE Capital Goods gaining 3.94 percent, reflecting strong risk-on sentiment after the India-US trade deal. BSE Metal rose 3.21 percent, extending its outperformance with a 42 percent gain over the past year, while BSE Auto climbed 2.86 percent. In contrast, defensives lagged: BSE FMCG added just 0.87 percent and remains down over 8 percent year-to-date, while BSE IT rose 1.73 percent but continues to show a double-digit decline over one year, underscoring uneven sectoral recovery beneath the headline index gains.

The Sensex was trading at 83,909, up 2.75 percent on the day, while the BSE 200 gained 2.8 percent to 11,651, reflecting continued strength in frontline stocks. In contrast, broader markets underperformed on a relative basis, with the BSE Midcap down 1.56 percent and the BSE Smallcap lower by 2.19 percent, even as headline indices surged. Among sectors, BSE Bankex rose 2.53 percent, extending its strong one-year gain of nearly 21 percent, highlighting sustained buying interest in banking stocks despite recent volatility in the broader market.

Market breadth stayed exceptionally strong, with the Nifty 50 seeing all 50 constituents advancing and none declining as the index traded at 25,764.6, up 676.2 points or 2.7 percent. The strength extended well beyond largecaps, with the Nifty 500 recording 460 advances against just 38 declines, as the broader index rose 646.7 points or 2.83 percent to 23,483.7, underscoring widespread participation across the market.

Broader markets remained firm, with the Nifty Midcap 100 up 2.82 percent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 up 2.84 percent, extending gains from the opening trade and indicating continued risk-on sentiment beyond frontline stocks.

The India VIX slipped 5.6 percent to 13.09, reflecting easing volatility after the sharp repricing at the open and improved risk comfort following the India-US trade deal announcement.

Sectorally, Nifty Realty led the rally, up 4.45 percent, followed by Nifty Metal (up 3.40 percent), Nifty Infra (up 3.05 percent) and Nifty Pharma (up 3.02 percent). Banking indices remained strong, with Nifty Bank up 2.48 percent and Nifty Private Bank up 2.63 percent. In contrast, Nifty FMCG underperformed, rising just 0.45 percent.

On the Nifty 50, gains were led by shares of Adani Enterprises (up 10.3 percent), Adani Ports (up 9.1 percent), Bajaj Finance (up 6.7 percent) and Jio Financial (up 8.1 percent). These stocks also emerged as the top positive contributors to the index, alongside Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank.

Market breadth stayed decisively in favour of advances, with 3,123 shares rising, 778 declining, and 119 unchanged, suggesting sustained participation across the broader market despite consolidation in headline indices.

After a sharp opening surge, benchmark indices traded in a narrow range through early afternoon. At 2:01 pm, the Sensex was up 2,179 points (2.67 percent) at 83,845, while the Nifty 50 rose 671 points (2.67 percent) to 25,759. The Nifty has cooled from the day’s high of 26,341, while the Sensex has slipped from its intraday peak of 85,872, indicating consolidation after the opening spike.

Shares of fintech company Mobikwik jumped 17.12% to Rs 234.16 apiece as the company recorded first-ever profitable quarter since listing, reporting profit of Rs 4 crore as against loss of Rs 55 crore last year.

Gains remained broad-based across sectors, led by Nifty Realty, which jumped over 4 percent, followed by strong advances in metals, pharma, infrastructure, energy and PSU banks. Auto and IT also traded firmly higher, while FMCG underperformed with marginal gains, reflecting selective rotation within defensives even as risk appetite stayed strong across the market.

The rally remained evenly spread across market segments, with all key NSE indices trading firmly higher. The Nifty 50 was up 2.8 percent near 25,790, while the Nifty Bank gained 2.6 percent, continuing to anchor the upmove. Broader markets outperformed slightly, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 rising nearly 3 percent each, underscoring strong risk appetite beyond frontline stocks as the trade-deal-led rally stayed intact.

Banking stocks remained firmly in focus as the rally broadened, with Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI, HDFC Bank, and Kotak Mahindra Bank posting solid gains in intraday trade. Mid-sized lenders such as IDFC First Bank and Federal Bank also advanced, underscoring broad-based buying across PSU and private banks as financials continued to anchor the market’s upmove.

Strength in the broader market continued to show through midcaps, with several stocks scaling fresh 52-week highs. Bharat Forge, Ashok Leyland, APL Apollo Tubes, and Federal Bank touched new yearly peaks during the session, reinforcing the view that buying interest remains firmly entrenched beyond frontline indices as the trade-deal-led rally broadens.

Today's rally pushed a clutch of largecap stocks to fresh 52-week highs on Tuesday, reflecting strong momentum beyond the benchmark indices. Stocks touching new yearly highs included Motherson, Shriram Finance, Axis Bank, SBI, Jindal Steel, HCL Tech, Bajaj Auto, Tech Mahindra, and Nestle, underscoring the breadth of buying across financials, IT, autos and industrial names even as benchmarks consolidated near intraday highs.

The India VIX slipped nearly 2 percent, signalling easing volatility even as markets remained sharply higher. Traders said the cooling of volatility alongside steady prices suggests improving conviction after weeks of uncertainty around tariffs, global flows and macro risks.

The rally continued to favour the broader market, with the BSE Midcap index outperforming benchmarks. Stocks such as Aarti Industries, Balkrishna Industries, Tube Investments, Godrej Properties, Dixon Technologies, and Bharat Forge posted sharp gains, driven by renewed interest in industrial, manufacturing and capex-linked names.

All major BSE sectoral indices traded higher, led by realty, power, services and capital goods, each rising over 4 percent. Auto, metals, consumer discretionary and healthcare stocks also logged strong gains, reflecting broad participation across cyclical and defensives alike.

Notably, there were no declining stocks on the Sensex at the 1 pm mark, highlighting the depth of buying interest across index constituents and the absence of meaningful selling pressure in frontline stocks.

On the Sensex, gains were led by Adani Ports, Bajaj Finance, InterGlobe Aviation, Sun Pharma, Power Grid, and Reliance Industries shares. Financial heavyweights HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Bajaj Finance emerged as the top positive contributors, underscoring the role of large-cap banks and lenders in sustaining benchmark strength.

After scaling sharp intraday highs earlier in the session, benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty settled into a narrow trading range post noon. The Sensex remained comfortably above the 83,900 mark, while the Nifty 50 held near 25,800, indicating consolidation rather than profit-taking following the strong opening rally.

Despite isolated pockets of weakness, market breadth across largecaps, midcaps and smallcaps stayed decisively positive, reinforcing the view that Tuesday’s move is a broad-based relief rally rather than a narrow, index-driven spike.

Even as the broader market remained firm, select stocks saw mild profit-taking, particularly in the midcap and Nifty 500 space. PB Fintech, Intellect Design Arena, Global Health, Chennai Petroleum, and Kansai Nerolac were among the laggards, though losses remained contained amid strong overall market sentiment.

Textile and apparel-linked stocks were prominent among smallcap gainers, with several names locked at the upper circuit. Traders said easing trade uncertainty and improved export visibility have revived interest in select beaten-down manufacturing plays.

The rally extended decisively into smallcaps, with multiple stocks hitting the 20 percent upper circuit. Export-oriented and manufacturing names such as Gokaldas Exports, Pokarna, Avalon Technologies, Garware Hi-Tech Films, Kitex Garments, and Indo Count Industries surged, validating broad-based participation beyond frontline indices.

Real estate and defence-linked stocks continued to attract aggressive buying in the midcap universe. Godrej Properties, Bharat Forge, and GE Vernova TD featured among top gainers with gains of up to 9 percent, as investors positioned for improved investment sentiment following the India-US trade deal.

Buying momentum remained strong in the midcap space, with the BSE Midcap index sharply outperforming benchmarks. Stocks such as Aarti Industries, Balkrishna Industries, Premier Energies, Godrej Properties, Tube Investments, and Bharat Forge rallied between 7-15 percent, reflecting renewed risk appetite in industrial, manufacturing and capital goods-linked names.

The India VIX slipped nearly 2 percent, indicating easing volatility even as equities remained sharply higher. Traders said falling volatility alongside rising prices suggests improving conviction after weeks of uncertainty around trade, tariffs and foreign flows.

The rally extended well beyond frontline indices, with Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 both rising over 3 percent. Market participants said sustained strength in the broader market points to confidence that the trade-deal-led move is not just a short-covering bounce but is drawing incremental risk capital.

On the sectoral front, Nifty Realty remained the top performer, up over 5 percent, followed by strong gains in infrastructure, consumer durables, pharma, energy and banking indices. All major sectoral indices were trading in the green, underlining the broad-based nature of the rally.

Buying remained concentrated in select heavyweight stocks, with Adani Enterprises extending gains beyond 11 percent. Adani Ports, Jio Financial Services, Bajaj Finance, and Shriram Finance shares also traded sharply higher. Financials and infrastructure-linked names continued to attract strong inflows, reflecting renewed risk appetite.

The rally in Sensex and Nifty 50 showed no signs of fatigue by midday, with both headline indices consolidating near their intraday highs after the strong opening surge. Traders said the absence of sharp profit-taking suggests continued confidence in the durability of the move, supported by broad participation across sectors.

Sibal said the landmark EU-India free trade agreement was a crucial catalyst in pushing the US to conclude a trade deal with India. He noted that it had become clear to Washington that pressure tactics were not working, prompting a shift towards engagement. He also said that minor concessions on select agricultural products had already been extended earlier, helping smooth negotiations ahead of the broader agreement.

Former Indian foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal said he does not expect India to completely halt purchases of Russian crude despite commitments under the India-US trade deal. Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Sibal said Russian oil could still be sourced through the spot market by non-sanctioned companies, suggesting flexibility remains within the broader framework of the agreement.

Department of Economic Affairs Secretary Anuradha Thakur said a significant amount of global uncertainty had eased this morning following the India-US trade agreement. She noted that the deal has removed a major source of uncertainty hanging over markets and the broader macro environment, offering relief amid a challenging global backdrop.

Department of Financial Services Secretary M Nagaraju said the India-US trade deal has removed a key overhang on the Indian economy, calling it a “good day” for markets and industry. He said tariffs coming down sharply from 50 percent to 18 percent would allow companies to plan with greater certainty, adding that both the commerce and finance ministries had been working on the agreement for a long time. Nagaraju said industry can now “breathe a sigh of relief” and flagged that the government hopes to soon issue the terms of reference for a high-level banking sector panel, with wider consultations planned to chart a roadmap for the sector.

Shares of Transrail Lighting jumpED 8.2% to Rs 536.80 apiece as the engineering and construction company posted 18% YoY rise in quarterly profit to Rs 109 crore on Monday.

The company said profit led by order wins especially in the core Power T&D segment in India and overseas.

"For equity markets, the trade deal enhances earnings' visibility, supports valuation re-rating, particularly for export-oriented and capex-linked sectors and reinforces India's positioning as a relatively safe haven among emerging markets," said Uttam Kumar Srimal, deputy head of fundamental research at Axis Direct.

"Indian equity markets are expected to surge 3% on open as the deal completely eliminates key policy uncertainties. The positive sentiment could trigger immediate foreign capital inflows, potentially turning India's Balance of Payments (BoP) position. This positive surprise will force many participants, including FPIs who are heavily short in the market, to cover their positions, which should lead to a sharp surge across indices and derivative stocks in today's session," said Vikram Kasat, Head Advisory, PL Capital.

Shares of Indian electronics manufacturing services (EMS) firms Dixon Technologies, Syrma SGS, Kaynes Technology India rise between 4.6% to 6.5%

US President Donald Trump on Monday announced a trade deal with India, cutting tariffs on Indian goods to 18% and linking the move to India curbing Russian oil purchases.

ICICI Securities said lower US tariffs could aid EMS exporters, including Dixon Technologies, Kaynes Technology and Syrma SGS, by improving export competitiveness and margins.

Shares of India's chemical manufacturers rose between 5.5% and 13.9%.

US President Donald Trump on Monday announced a trade deal with India that slashes US tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 50% in exchange of India halting Russian oil purchases and lowering trade barriers

ICICI Direct Research said although details are still awaited, it believes the reduction is likely to provide a level-playing ground to India with other competitors such as China, South Korea, Japan, EU, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines

India's chemical exports to the U.S. stood at ~$6 billion, accounting for 18% of the overall chemical exports, the brokerage said.

Aarti Industries leads gains among the pack with a 13.9% jump, followed by Gujarat Fluorochemicals up 8.1%, and Navin Fluorine International up 7.2%.

Indian auto stocks rose between 1.2% to 8.9% after India-US trade deal lowers Washington's tariffs on Indian exports to 18%, from 50% earlier

Gains led by auto parts makers; Balkrishna Industries up 7.3%, Bharat Forge jumps 8.7%, Samvardhana Motherson rises 6.8%.

Jefferies says key beneficiaries includes auto ancillaries with meaningful exposure to the U.S. such as Sona BLW Precision Forgings which is up 7%.

Nifty IT index rose 2.5% to 39,006.10 on February 3 after President Donald Trump said he had agreed on a trade deal with India, lowering tariff on Indian shipments to 18% from 25%. Trump administration is also dropping 25% additional tariffs imposed on Indian imports over purchases of Russian oil

All constituents of NIFTY IT are in green with Infosys up 3.1%, Tata Consultancy Services gaining 1.6%, and HCL Technologies rising 2.3%.

Wipro is up 2.6% and Tech Mahindra rose 1.7%.

Heavyweight stocks continued to underpin the benchmark rally in early trade. Reliance Industries, Infosys, and HCL Technologies were among the key contributors to the Sensex’s sharp gains, alongside buying in M&M, Sun Pharma, Maruti Suzuki, and Kotak Mahindra Bank. Strength across these large-cap names highlights the index-heavyweight-driven nature of the rally, even as broader market participation remains strong.

Market breadth remained extremely strong in early trade. On the Nifty 50, as many as 48 stocks were advancing, while just 2 stocks were in the red, as the index traded at 25,771.65, up 683 points or 2.72 percent. The skewed advance-decline ratio highlights the broad-based nature of the rally, with buying interest spread across most index heavyweights.

Even as equities surged, India VIX jumped over 7 percent, indicating elevated volatility amid sharp repricing after the trade-deal announcement. Meanwhile, the rally extended well beyond frontline indices, with midcap and smallcap stocks rising over 3 percent each, signalling strong participation across the broader market as investors rotated aggressively into risk assets.

The rally widened across sectors in early trade, with all major Nifty sectoral indices trading firmly in the green. Nifty Realty led the gains, jumping over 4 percent, followed by strong moves in auto, infrastructure, consumer durables, IT and metals. Banking stocks also remained in focus, with Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Bank rising nearly 3 percent and over 2.5 percent, respectively, underscoring broad-based risk-on positioning across cyclicals and defensives alike.

Buying momentum remained strong in early trade, with financials and Adani group stocks leading the gains on the Nifty. Adani Enterprises and Adani Ports were among the top performers, rising nearly 9 percent and over 7 percent, respectively. Bajaj Finance, Jio Financial Services, and Shriram Finance also logged sharp gains, reflecting strong risk appetite in rate-sensitive and lending stocks. IT and pharma names such as Infosys and Dr Reddy’s Laboratories added to the upside, underlining the broad-based nature of the rally as markets continued to build on optimism around the India-US trade deal.

The opening surge in Indian equities held firm in early trade, with benchmarks extending gains as buying remained broad-based. At 9:23 am, the Sensex was up 2,501 points, or nearly 3.1 percent, at 84,167. The Nifty climbed 761 points, or over 3 percent, to 25,850. Market breadth stayed decisively positive, with advances far outnumbering declines, underscoring sustained risk-on sentiment across the broader market.

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty opened sharply higher on Tuesday, confirming a strong gap-up start after the India-US trade deal announcement. At 9:15 am, the Sensex was up 2,413 points, or 2.95 percent, at 84,079, while the Nifty surged 734 points, or 2.93 percent, to 25,823. Market breadth was decisively positive at the open, with advances overwhelmingly outnumbering declines, reflecting broad-based buying interest in early trade.

The pre-open rally intensified ahead of the opening bell, signalling a powerful gap-up start for Indian equities. At 9:08 am, the Sensex was up 3,648 points, or 4.47 percent, at 85,314, while the Nifty surged 1,220 points, or 4.86 percent, to 26,308. The sharp move reflects aggressive repricing across the board, with most stocks locked in the pre-open session as markets react to the India–US trade deal announcement.

Global cues were broadly supportive ahead of the opening bell. US markets ended sharply higher overnight, led by strong gains in the Dow and continued strength in technology stocks. Asian markets were mixed in early trade, as investors assessed global growth signals and trade developments, while Indian markets tracked the India–US trade deal announcement as the dominant driver for today’s session.

Indian equity benchmarks staged a strong rebound in the previous session after the sharp Budget-day sell-off. The Sensex surged 944 points, or 1.17 percent, to close at 81,666, while the Nifty climbed 263 points, or 1.06 percent, to 25,088, aided by short covering and selective buying in index heavyweights.

According to Jain, export-facing sectors are likely to see the earliest buying interest, particularly in mid- and small-cap stocks that had faced relentless selling pressure during the tariff uncertainty phase. With trade risks easing, he expects some pullback and stabilisation in these segments.

Ritesh Jain said the rupee’s recent depreciation was not entirely negative, arguing that current levels are more sustainable given global conditions. He said the new equilibrium for the currency is closer to 90 to the dollar, rather than a return to earlier levels near 85, and that a stabilising rupee could improve the attractiveness of Indian assets for both foreign investors and NRIs.

US-based macro investor Ritesh Jain said the trade deal could help reverse some foreign outflows, noting that Indian equities had seen prolonged pessimism and capital flight over the past year. He said markets dislike uncertainty, and the removal of the tariff overhang provides a much-needed sentiment boost, especially as valuations have corrected and the rupee has weakened.

RPG Enterprises Chairman Harsh Goenka described the agreement as the “Father of all deals” following India’s trade pact with the EU, saying the announcement reflected patience and persistence on the part of the government. His comments add to growing corporate endorsement of the tariff rollback.

India Inc has welcomed the India–US trade breakthrough, calling it a significant boost for investment and long-term competitiveness. Kumar Mangalam Birla said the reduced tariffs would help strengthen strategic and economic ties between the two countries, unlock manufacturing opportunities and support more resilient supply chains. He added that the Aditya Birla Group, the largest Indian investor in the US, sees scope to expand its presence further under the new framework.

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said the India–US trade agreement marks a “new era of relations” between the two countries, following the decision to cut tariffs on Indian goods to 18 percent. Speaking to CNN-News18, Gor said both President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi played decisive roles in pushing the deal through, underscoring its strategic importance beyond trade.

Bank Nifty is expected to participate in the relief rally, with analysts pointing to oversold conditions in heavyweight lenders. Key resistance is seen around 59,500–60,000, while support is placed near the 58,200 zone, where buyers have repeatedly emerged in recent sessions.

From a technical standpoint, analysts said a sustained move above the 25,600–25,700 zone could open the door to a test of 25,800–26,000 in the near term. However, they cautioned traders against chasing the gap-up opening, advising close tracking of price action in the first hour to assess whether gains are being held.

Export-oriented segments such as IT services, pharmaceuticals, auto ancillaries, textiles, gems and jewellery, and select engineering goods are expected to be in focus after the tariff rollback. Analysts said lower trade friction improves price competitiveness for Indian exporters, even as the full earnings impact will depend on execution and follow-through.