Indian equity benchmarks closed higher on Tuesday, driven by gains in information technology and banking stocks. Markets made a positive start and remained higher throughout the day, amid optimism over a potential interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve next week. Some support came in as Israel's Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich said that the bilateral investment agreement signed with India would provide a strong push for private companies to invest in each other's economies.

Some of the important factors in trade:

India, Israel ink Bilateral Investment Agreement to boost investments, trade: Some support came as India and Israel have signed a Bilateral Investment Agreement (Agreement). The agreement is expected to boost investments, provide greater certainty and protection for investors, facilitating the growth of trade and mutual investments by ensuring a minimum standard of treatment, and an independent dispute resolution mechanism through arbitration. 

Piyush Goyal asks industry to pass on full benefit of GST rate cuts to consumers: Sentiments remained upbeat as Union Minister Piyush Goyal asked the industry to pass on the full benefit of GST rate cuts to consumers, thereby increasing the demand of domestic products and strengthen the foundation of India's economy.

India, EU officials commence next round of trade pact talks: Traders took a note of a private report that India and the European Union (EU) have started the next round of negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA).

Global front: European markets were trading mostly in green as investors shrugged off data that showed French industrial production declined by 1.1 percent in July compared to June, mainly on lower aircraft production. Asian markets ended mixed as traders remained cautious ahead of key U.S. inflation readings due later in the week that could influence the US Fed's rate trajectory.

The BSE Sensex ended at 81101.32, up by 314.02 points or 0.39% after trading in a range of 80927.97 and 81181.37. There were 21 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.20%, while Small cap index up by 0.22%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 2.76%, TECK up by 2.18%, Healthcare up by 0.67%, Telecom up by 0.57% and FMCG up by 0.54%, while Oil & Gas down by 0.31%, Realty down by 0.31%, Energy down by 0.20%, PSU down by 0.17% and Auto down by 0.13% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 5.00%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone up by 2.64%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.42%, HCL Technologies up by 1.61% and TCS up by 1.08%. On the flip side, Trent down by 1.66%, Eternal down by 1.20%, Ultratech Cement down by 0.91%, Tata Motors down by 0.60% and NTPC down by 0.60% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, amid increasing global concerns over Washington's tariff tussle, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has said that the world is seeking a stable and predictable environment for trade; and economic practices should be fair, transparent and to everyone's benefit. He said India strongly believes that the international trading system's foundational principles of non-discriminatory and rules-based norms must be protected and that there is a need to create more resilient and reliable supply chains.

He said ‘The world as a collective is seeking a stable and predictable environment for trade and investment. At the same time, it is imperative that economic practices are fair, transparent and to everyone’s benefit’. He said ‘When there are multiple disruptions, our objective should be to proof it against such shocks. That means creating more resilient, reliable, redundant and shorter supply chains’. He said the world requires ‘constructive and cooperative’ approaches to promote trade that is sustainable. He added ‘Increasing barriers and complicating transactions will not help. Neither would the linking of trade measures to non-trade matters’.

Jaishankar represented Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a virtual BRICS summit that saw participation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and several other leaders of the grouping. It was convened by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to discuss trade disruptions triggered by U.S.’s policies on trade and tariff. The U.S. slapped 50% tariffs on Brazilian exports like in the case of India. At the summit, he called for urgent resolution to ongoing conflicts, adding the Global South has experienced a deterioration in its food, energy and fertilizer security. However, the major focus of his speech was on trade.

He further said BRICS itself can set an example by reviewing trade flows among its member states. He said ‘Where India is concerned, some of our biggest deficits are with BRICS partners and we have been pressing for expeditious solutions. We hope that this realisation will be part of the takeaways from today’s meeting’. The remarks assumed significance as they came amid India's ballooning trade deficit with China. He said ‘The international trading system is based on the foundational principles of open, fair, transparent, non-discriminatory, inclusive, equitable and a rules-based approach with special and differential treatment for developing countries’. He added ‘India strongly believes that this should be protected and nurtured’.

The CNX Nifty ended at 24868.60, up by 95.45 points or 0.39% after trading in a range of 24814.00 and 24891.80. There were 32 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Infosys up by 4.85%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 3.55%, Wipro up by 2.76%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone up by 2.54% and Tech Mahindra up by 2.45%. On the flip side, Trent down by 1.70%, Eternal down by 1.20%, JIO Financial Services down by 1.01%, Ultratech Cement down by 0.81% and Titan Company down by 0.63% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading mostly in green; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 22.72 points or 0.25% to 9,244.16 and France’s CAC rose 27.66 points or 0.36% to 7,762.50, while Germany’s DAX lost 57.23 points or 0.24% to 23,749.90.