Indian equity benchmarks erased all of their initial gains and slipped into red in morning deals, weighed down by massive withdrawal of foreign funds and surging crude oil prices amid geopolitical uncertainties. Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 10,716.64 crore on a net basis on Friday, according to exchange data. Traders overlooked Fitch Ratings’ report in which it has raised India’s GDP growth forecast marginally to 7.5 per cent for FY26 with domestic demand being the biggest growth driver this year. Sector-wise, power stocks remained in watch as the Ministry of Power said the government announced amendments in the electricity norms for bringing more clarity for captive power generation, especially for industries, in line with India's energy transition goals. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as investors assess elevated oil prices and the latest developments in the escalating U.S.-Iran conflict. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 74171.54, down by 392.38 points or 0.53% after trading in a range of 74158.17 and 74983.29. There were 8 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty down by 3.03%, Oil & Gas down by 2.48%, Capital Goods down by 2.20%, Energy down by 2.01% and PSU down by 1.97%, while there was no gaining sectoral index on the BSE. 

The top gainers on the Sensex were Ultratech Cement up by 3.09%, HDFC Bank up by 0.86%, Interglobe Aviation up by 0.71%, ITC up by 0.66% and Tata Steel up by 0.65%. On the flip side, Bharat Electronics down by 3.14%, Power Grid Corporation down by 2.59%, NTPC down by 1.57%, Infosys down by 1.42% and Sun Pharma down by 1.42% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal has said that India must move beyond its identity as the 'Pharmacy of the World' to establish itself as a global medtech manufacturing hub. Moreover, Agrawal underscored the larger aim of achieving a $30 billion medical devices industry by 2030, while leveraging India's significant domestic market for scaling. 

Talking about strengthening India's medical devices export ecosystem, he said the country needs to work towards increasing its global market share in the next decade by prioritizing high-value production, research investments, and streamlined regulations.

India's medical device exports have crossed $4 billion in FY25. Besides, Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Lav Aggarwal called for the need to grow faster by addressing structural issues. He noted the significance of strategic trade policies and export promotion initiatives in boosting India's presence in global medical devices markets.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23035.60, down by 115.50 points or 0.50% after trading in a range of 23024.45 and 23284.65. There were 13 stocks advancing against 37 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Ultratech Cement up by 2.99%, Grasim Industries up by 2.27%, Hindalco up by 1.68%, JSW Steel up by 1.62% and HDFC Bank up by 0.88%. On the flip side, Bharat Electronics down by 2.97%, Power Grid Corporation down by 2.72%, Max Healthcare Inst down by 2.04%, Shriram Finance down by 1.85% and Coal India down by 1.80% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Taiwan Weighted added 33.2 points or 0.1% to 33,433.52, KOSPI increased 38.00 points or 0.69% to 5,525.24, Hang Seng advanced 321.4 points or 1.25% to 25,787.00 and Straits Times rose 4.21 points or 0.09% to 4,846.48.

On the flip side, Nikkei 225 slipped 334.61 points or 0.62% to 53,485.00, Jakarta Composite plunged 97.8 points or 1.39% to 7,039.41 and Shanghai Composite weakened 14.43 points or 0.35% to 4,081.02.