The S&P BSE Sensex rose 51 points, or 0.06%, to 84,731 in early trade, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped 14 points, or 0.05%, to 25,874.
Among Sensex constituents, shares of State Bank of India, Axis Bank, Eternal, Bajaj Finance and Tata Consultancy Services led the advance, rising between 1% and 1.5% in early trade.
The broader market showed little conviction, with mid-cap and small-cap indices trading largely flat.
In single stocks, Akzo Nobel India slid about 15% after reports said Imperial Chemical Industries sold roughly 48.8 lakh shares in the company through a block deal.
RailTel Corporation of India climbed 2% on reports that the state-run telecom and ICT services provider is in talks with Elon Musk-owned Starlink over a potential partnership in India.
Expert views
Recent sharp fall in the rupee and crude has been attracting the attention of investors and decline in crude, on poor demand from China and the US, is good news for India’s macros, which are already in a Goldilocks setting, said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments.
“However, sustained fall in the rupee is accelerating FII outflows, thereby hurting the market. This kind of sharp depreciation in the rupee was not expected particularly after the November trade data showed sharp decline in trade deficit at $24.5 billion vs 41.5 billion in October,” said Vijayakumar.
With the ongoing weakening of the AI trade, FIIs are likely to turn buyers in India sometime in 2026, said Vijayakumar, adding that “If, along with this, a US-India trade deal happens, FIIs will turn buyers in India. There is a likelihood of rupee strengthening in H1 2026. Therefore, while FII selling is depressing stock prices now, investors should buy in anticipation of a 2026 rally.”
Global Markets
Global equities were largely rangebound Wednesday as a mixed U.S. jobs report failed to alter expectations for the Federal Reserve’s rate path, leaving investors searching for fresh catalysts. Oil prices advanced after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered what he called a “total and complete” blockade of sanctioned oil tankers moving in and out of Venezuela, injecting new geopolitical risk even as concerns linger over global demand.
MSCI’s broad Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan rose 0.24%, buoyed by gains in China, while Japan’s Nikkei added 0.35%. U.S. equity futures were little changed, with Nasdaq and S&P 500 contracts flat following a mixed session on Wall Street. Fed funds futures continue to price in roughly two U.S. rate cuts next year, with the latest labor-market data doing little to shift that outlook.
In China, the CSI 300 blue-chip index climbed 0.6%, while the Shanghai Composite edged up 0.08%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.07%. Elsewhere, spot gold rose 0.2% to $4,312.34 an ounce.
FII/DII Tracker
On the institutional front, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth nearly Rs 2,382 crore on December 16, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 1,077 crore.
Crude impact
Oil prices rebounded after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered what he described as a “total and complete” blockade of sanctioned oil tankers moving in and out of Venezuela, rekindling geopolitical risk at a time when worries about global demand persist.
U.S. crude futures rose 1.3% to $55.97 a barrel, while Brent crude gained 1.15% to $59.60, paring some of Tuesday’s sharp losses. Prices had slid earlier as optimism grew around a potential Russia–Ukraine peace agreement, a development that could pave the way for eased sanctions and increased supply.
Rupee vs Dollar
The Indian rupee weakened in early trade on Wednesday, falling 12 paise to 91.05 against the U.S. dollar, a day after sliding 0.3% to a record low of 91.0750 amid heavy dollar demand tied to non-deliverable forward maturities and tight onshore dollar supply.
The dollar index hovered near a two-month low but remained elevated at 98.29, as U.S. jobs data for October and November failed to materially alter expectations that the Federal Reserve will deliver two interest-rate cuts next month.
(with inputs from agencies)