Indian benchmark indices traded with marginal gains during afternoon sessions on Monday, October 26, amid volatile market conditions. According to reports from Business Standard, the SENSEX surged as much as 0.5% to hit an intraday high of 73,491.97, while the NIFTY50 rose as much as 0.47% to touch the session's peak of 22,706.15. However, at 1:06 PM, the S&P BSE SENSEX was trading flat at 73,142.64, up by 18.81 points or 0.03%, while NSE's NIFTY50 stood at 22,600.55, reflecting a 0.55-point, or 0.002% increase. The India VIX, the volatility gauge, advanced as much as 6.7% to hit an intraday high level of 18.
According to market data, the top gainers in the NIFTY50 index included Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, BSE Ltd, Eternal, JSW Steel, and Kotak Mahindra Bank. On the contrary, Shriram Finance, Tata Consumer Products, HDFC Life Insurance Company, Bajaj Finance, and Asian Paints were among the top losers. As reported by Business Standard, Indian export-oriented sectors such as textiles, gems & jewellery, leather and footwear, and marine products were in focus as latest news reports suggested that India's free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU) may come into effect in the first quarter of 2027 after being signed by the end of 2026.
Apollo Micro Systems advanced as much as 15.3% to hit an intraday high of ₹432 per equity share on Monday, October 26, as the company reported strong earnings for the July-September quarter of the 2026-27 financial year (Q2 FY27). According to company filings, its consolidated net profit (attributable to the owners of the company) stood at ₹46.15 crore during the quarter under review, marking a 48.34% year-on-year increase from ₹31.11 crore in Q2 FY6. The company's consolidated revenue from operations soared 72.3% YoY to ₹388.15 crore in Q2 FY7, from ₹225.26 crore in the year-ago period. Shriram Finance declined as much as 6.34% to hit an intraday low of ₹810.20 apiece, despite the NBFC's standalone profit after tax rising 59.37% YoY to ₹3,677.03 crore during the quarter under review.
LTTS secured a five-year engineering collaboration with Nokia to support research and development activities in India, with shares gaining as much as 3.6% to hit an intraday high of ₹4,050 apiece. Under the agreement, LTTS will establish a dedicated Offshore Development Center (ODC) in India to support Nokia's global technology center, focusing on product engineering, new product development, system integration, and ongoing support. The ODC will bring data-center-grade compute and AI-infrastructure engineering to next-generation telecom solutions, with work spanning 5G networks, intelligent automation, AI-driven operations, and AI infrastructure. Vivek Jaiswal, Senior Vice President of Engineering at Nokia, stated that India is an important innovation hub for the company, while Alind Saxena, Executive Director & President – Strategic Initiatives & Growth Markets at LTTS, described the engagement as a significant milestone for the company's Technology Segment.
According to Business Standard reports, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said last week that the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA), announced on January 27, 2026, is expected to be signed before the end of the calendar year. Speaking at the Berlin Global Dialogue in Germany, Goyal added that the agreement would 'probably' be operationalised in the first quarter of 2027. Shipbuilders such as Cochin Shipyard, Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders were in the spotlight as Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal began a four-day visit to South Korea to explore shipbuilding cooperation. The proposed collaborations and infrastructure upgrades could create longer-term opportunities as India seeks to expand its maritime capacity and strengthen trade links.
