The Budget emerges as a measured, credible and forward-looking policy document that reinforces India's commitment to remaining a stable, reform-oriented economy amid an increasingly fragmented global landscape, says A Balasubramanian.
Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended marginally higher on Wednesday as a sharp decline in IT blue-chip stocks restricted the rally in the markets.
'Instant home services act as an on-demand household support system, bridging the gap between informal domestic help and structured service platforms,'
'When there is such an elaborate and a strong process, one would have expected anyone to either place the issues so that they can be addressed or go to the regulator and probably tell them rather than creating a kind of uncertainty for the stakeholders.
Nearly two-thirds of external commercial borrowings (ECBs) raised so far in the ongoing financial year (2025-26/FY26) have been routed through Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), a sharp jump from the 36 per cent recorded in 2024-25.
ICICI Bank, Eternal, Titan, Adani Ports, Tata Consultancy Services and UltraTech Cement were also among the laggards. However, InterGlobe Aviation, Tech Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever and Bajaj Finance were among the gainers.
Capex, infrastructure development, and prudent fiscal management are the key focus areas in the Budget, says Nilesh Shah.
Gold prices are expected to maintain their upward momentum though some consolidation could set in ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy decision on September 17, analysts said. Traders will focus on the trade inflation data to gauge the impact of tariffs, inflation numbers from major economies including UK and Euro zone, along with monetary policy meetings of Bank of England and Bank of Japan which will provide more guidance for bullion prices, they added.
In an event-heavy week ahead, stock markets are expected to track Q3 corporate earnings from several blue-chip firms, including TCS and Infosys, while inflation data and global trends would also dictate investors' sentiment, analysts said.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Maruti, Power Grid, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, HDFC Bank, Asian Paints and Tata Steel were among the biggest laggards. However, Titan, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services were among the gainers.
The auction of The Hundred on Thursday was meant to be a celebratory milestone for the England and Wales Cricket Board. Instead, it has triggered a controversy in India.
Sebi is working with other regulators to expand the CAS framework.
The first day of the year 2026 was positive for the debt market with foreign investors buying a net domestic debt of Rs 7,524 crore, the highest single-day inflow since May 29 last year.
'The first time India has seen two consecutive blockbuster IPO years.'
Reliance Industries cracked 4.42 per cent, while ITC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, InterGlobe Aviation, and HDFC Bank were also among the laggards. However, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma, Hindustan Unilever, and State Bank of India were among the gainers.
Investors and startup executives are calling for extending the period for an entity to be recognised as a startup from 10 to 15 years for deep-tech companies.
Jefferies has downgraded Indian information technology (IT) companies Infosys, HCLTech, and Mphasis to "hold"; LTI MindTree, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Hexaware to "underperform", citing artificial intelligence (AI)-related concerns. Coforge, Sagility and IKS, however, still remain its top picks.
Trade deals ease risks for Indian equities, but weak demand and stretched valuations raise questions over whether optimism -- especially in smallcaps -- can turn into a sustained bull run, points out Debashis Basu.
'Trading without strict position sizing, stop-loss discipline, or a clear exit plan almost guarantees losses.' 'Chasing tips, reacting to intraday noise, or assuming frequent trading improves outcomes are equally damaging habits.'
The seventh edition of Bengaluru GAFX, a major AVGC-XR conference and exhibition, will be held from February 27, showcasing advancements in animation, visual effects, gaming, comics, and extended reality.
Fund managers advise conservative investors to cap midcap exposure at 10 to 15 per cent of their equity portfolio.
This Budget positions India's taxation ideology as not merely a revenue source but as a strategic catalyst for growth, inclusion and long-term confidence.
Cleaner balance sheets, regulatory support and strong growth prospects helped Indian private banks attract over $6 billion in foreign capital, with more deals expected in 2026.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank, Titan and Trent were among the biggest gainers. However, Tata Consultancy Services, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Bajaj Finance and Sun Pharma, were the laggards.
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
From the 30-Sensex firms, Trent, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, InterGlobe Aviation, Maruti, ITC, Adani Ports and Bharat Electronics were among the biggest laggards. In contrast, Eternal, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra, State Bank of India and Tata Consultancy Services were among the gainers.
Shares of brokerage-related companies nosedived 18 per cent on Sunday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed raising securities transaction tax on commodity futures to 0.05 per cent from 0.02 per cent in the Union Budget 2026-27.
Gold prices are likely to trade firm next week as traders await key economic data, including US inflation numbers, for fresh cues on interest rate outlook, while silver may remain volatile amid shifting risk sentiment and speculative activity, analysts said.
The surge has come alongside a decline in average issue sizes and more muted listing-day returns compared with last year.
FDI inflows into India are expected to register robust growth in 2026, supported by strong macroeconomic fundamentals, big-ticket investment announcements, sustained efforts to improve the ease of doing business, and a new generation of investment-linked trade pacts.
Hindustan Unilever (HUL) has topped the Perpetual Capital Hurun India Impact 50 - 2026 list with 53.9 points (on the scale of 0-100), reflecting a strong performance across key sustainable development goals (SDGs), including climate, water, circularity, gender and biodiversity.
Country's startups are carving a unique path by prioritising local, application-led innovation over the global pursuit of scale.
Indian artificial intelligence (AI) startup Sarvam launched two indigenous large language models (LLMs) specifically trained on Indian languages on Wednesday.
Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty dived sharply by nearly 2 per cent on Sunday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed a hike in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on derivatives. Reversing the early gains, the 30-share BSE Sensex plunged sharply by 2,370.36 points or 2.88 per cent to slide below the 80,000-mark at 79,899.42 in afternoon trade as the finance minister announced a hike in STT on futures contracts to 0.05 per cent from the current 0.02 per cent.
'Given that India underperformed emerging markets by 28 per cent in 2025, the worst performance in over 30 years, the timing of the sharp STT hike could have been better.'
Domestic equities surged on Tuesday, posting their best single-day gains in more than eight months after a long-awaited trade deal between India and the US. The deal, which lowered tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent, significantly improved investor sentiment and lifted a key overhang for the market.
Silver and gold prices declined sharply in the futures trade on Friday as traders booked profits at elevated levels after a record-breaking rally, tracking a bearish sentiment in global markets and a rebound in the US dollar.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints, HCL Tech, Tata Consultancy Services, Eternal and Sun Pharma were among the biggest laggards. However, Titan, NTPC, Axis Bank, UltraTech Cement, Reliance Industries and Hindustan Unilever were the gainers.
India was being evaluated for a potential weight of around 1 per cent in the index, an allocation that could have translated into $25 billion of inflows, spread over roughly 10 months.
Cognizant reported a significant increase in net income for the December quarter, driven by AI efficiencies and strong performance in the financial services sector. The company also announced a major deal and provided guidance for the upcoming year.
