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Dalal Street remains red
May-20-2026

Indian equity benchmarks remained subdued in early afternoon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading lower, amid selling at FMCG and Basic Materials counters. Weak cues from other Asian markets due to ongoing concerns surrounding the U.S.-Iran conflict, also kept sentiments down.  Adding some worries among traders, a report by Crisil Intelligence stated that the ongoing West Asia conflict has begun materializing as a major downside risk for the Indian economy, severely impacting international trade and inflating import costs.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading lower, after China maintained its loan prime rates unchanged for the twelfth straight month, as widely expected. The People's Bank of China maintained its one-year loan prime rate at 3.0 percent. Similarly, the five-year LPR, the benchmark for mortgage rates, was retained at 3.50 percent. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 75078.32, down by 122.53 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 74529.41 and 75244.64. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 1.08%, Energy up by 1.03%, Oil & Gas up by 1.02%, Capital Goods up by 0.88% and Auto up by 0.87%, while FMCG down by 0.86%, Basic Materials down by 0.50%, Consumer Durables down by 0.39%, Metal down by 0.35% and Bankex down by 0.30% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Reliance Industries up by 1.85%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.34%, NTPC up by 0.44%, Bajaj Finserv up by 0.41% and Maruti Suzuki up by 0.37%. On the flip side, Bharat Electronics down by 3.02%, Tata Steel down by 2.17%, ITC down by 1.29%, Eternal down by 1.01% and ICICI Bank down by 0.84% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, deeping their bilateral ties, India and the Nordic countries, which includes Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden, have agreed to elevate their relationship to a Green Technology and Innovation Strategic Partnership. The decision came after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with his Nordic counterparts. The Green Technology and Innovation Strategic Partnership is aimed at bolstering cooperation in areas such as clean and green transition, trade and investments and blue economy. 

Besides, the leaders shared views on global issues and global tensions during the meeting. Prime Minister Modi has said that ‘In this era of global tensions and conflicts, India and the Nordic nations will continue to work together to strengthen the rules-based global order. Whether it is Ukraine or West Asia, we will continue to support the earliest resolution of conflicts and efforts towards peace’. Moreover, both sides have agreed that reform of multilateral institutions is both necessary and urgent.

During 2024-2025, the bilateral trade between India and Sweden has reached to $7 billion, while India-Norway bilateral trade stood at $1.05 billion. Further, trade between India and Finland was reported at $1.02 billion during the same period. In 2025, trade between India and Denmark reached to $2.05 billion.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23590.55, down by 27.45 points or 0.12% after trading in a range of 23397.30 and 23640.25. There were 22 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindalco up by 2.81%, Bajaj Auto up by 2.16%, Reliance Industries up by 1.85%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.15% and ONGC up by 1.05%. On the flip side, Bharat Electronics down by 3.05%, Tata Steel down by 2.26%, Nestle down by 1.54%, ITC down by 1.26% and Eternal down by 1.08% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading lower; KOSPI dropped 62.71 points or 0.87% to 7,208.95, Hang Seng declined 158.85 points or 0.62% to 25,639.00, Shanghai Composite weakened 4.36 points or 0.1% to 4,165.18, Taiwan Weighted lost 154.74 points or 0.39% to 40,020.82, Nikkei 225 slipped 743.59 points or 1.24% to 59,807.00, Jakarta Composite plunged 12.99 points or 0.2% to 6,357.69 and Straits Times fell 31.87 points or 0.63% to 5,040.47.
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