Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade higher in morning deals, led by strong buying in Auto, Power and Healthcare stocks, tracking a rally in Asian markets. Traders took support as India and Brazil entered into Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore areas of mutual collaboration for the benefit of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and facilitate their access to green finance. Traders overlooked rating agency ICRA’s report in which it has estimated that India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth likely to ease to 7.2% in third quarter of current fiscal year (Q3FY26) as compared to 8.2% in Q2FY26. Sector-wise, pharma stocks remained in watch as the commerce ministry stated that India’s pharma exports grew 9.4 per cent in 2024-25 to $30.47 billion and the industry is aiming for a double-digit expansion in 2026-27. On the global front, Asian markets are trading in green, as the markets cheer the U.S. Supreme Court striking down most of US President Donald Trump's global tariffs saying the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, does not authorize the president to impose tariffs. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 83300.15, up by 485.44 points or 0.59% after trading in a range of 82906.83 and 83486.15. There were 19 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 0.73%, Power up by 0.58%, Healthcare up by 0.58%, Industrials up by 0.45% and Utilities up by 0.41%, while IT down by 1.06%, TECK down by 0.59%, Bankex down by 0.14%, Realty down by 0.05% and Basic Materials down by 0.04% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Adani Ports &SEZ up by 3.03%, Axis Bank up by 2.23%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.44%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.29% and HDFC Bank up by 1.17%. On the flip side, Kwality Wall's (India) down by 2.67%, Infosys down by 1.50%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.30%, Eternal down by 0.84% and Trent down by 0.70% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, India and Brazil have entered into Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore areas of mutual collaboration for the benefit of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and facilitate their access to green finance. The MoU was signed during the ongoing visit of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to India. The President of Brazil is on a five-day visit to India starting February 18 to hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attend the AI Impact Summit.

The MoU will provide a platform for both sides to discuss the issues related to MSMEs and explore potential areas of cooperation for the mutual benefit of MSMEs in both countries. It will offer a framework and conducive environment for the MSMEs of both countries to understand each other's strengths, markets, technologies, and policies. 

The agreement also seeks to create a supportive environment for advancing the green transition, including facilitating MSMEs' access to green finance, thereby enabling their integration into global markets and value chains, improving productivity, competitiveness and strengthening their capacity for sustainable development.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25726.30, up by 155.05 points or 0.61% after trading in a range of 25626.50 and 25771.45. There were 34 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Ports &SEZ up by 3.07%, Axis Bank up by 2.25%, SBI Life Insurance up by 2.05%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.94% and Adani Enterprises up by 1.72%. On the flip side, Kwality Wall's (India) down by 2.67%, Wipro down by 1.68%, ONGC down by 1.67%, Infosys down by 1.44% and Tech Mahindra down by 1.21% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading in green; Taiwan Weighted added 361.56 points or 1.08% to 33,967.27, Jakarta Composite gained 117.01 points or 1.41% to 8,388.78, KOSPI increased 25.49 points or 0.44% to 5,834.02, Hang Seng advanced 612.65 points or 2.27% to 27,026.00 and Straits Times rose 14.86 points or 0.3% to 5,032.46.