Indian equity benchmarks made positive start on Wednesday tracking broadly positive cues from Asian counterparts. Sensex and Nifty were trading higher with gains of over half a percent each in early deals on account of healthy buying in sector such as Auto, FMCG and TECK. Traders took note of report that Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will visit Canada next month to speed up negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA). India and Canada launched negotiations on March 2 for the agreement with an aim to finalise the pact soon.

However, upside remained capped as some cautiousness came after the government data showed that India's industrial production growth slowed down to a 5-month low of 4.1 per cent in March, mainly due to subdued performance of manufacturing and power sector amid the West Asia crisis. On the sectoral front, airline stocks were in focus as rating Agency ICRA said India's domestic air passenger traffic grew 1.4 per cent year-on-year to 1,677.4 lakh in FY26, in line with its estimate of 0-3 per cent. All Indian airlines together had flown a total of 1,653.8 lakh passengers in FY25.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 77275.98, up by 389.07 points or 0.51% after trading in a range of 77136.20 and 77334.74. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 1.71%, FMCG up by 1.10%, TECK up by 1.10%, Telecom up by 1.05% and IT up by 0.96%, while Metal down by 0.82%, Basic Materials down by 0.16%, PSU down by 0.04% and Utilities down by 0.01% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 4.30%, ITC up by 2.38%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.00%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.33% and Infosys up by 1.33%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 0.86%, Asian Paints down by 0.67%, ICICI Bank down by 0.53%, Axis Bank down by 0.52% and Bajaj Finance down by 0.50% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, after India and New Zealand signed a free trade agreement (FTA), Pankaj Chadha, Chairman of the Engineering Export Promotion Council of India (EEPC India), has said that India’s engineering exports to New Zealand are poised to double over the next five years, from $140.5 in 2025-26 million to $280-300 million, as the FTA provides zero-duty market access for all Indian goods. He emphasized that the agreement would offer a significant boost to the sector, particularly for MSMEs, by reducing trade barriers and ensuring stable market access in a relatively small yet high-potential market.

The FTA with New Zealand comes as part of India’s broader strategy to expand its engineering exports through trade agreements. Existing FTAs with Australia and the United Arab Emirates have already opened new opportunities, while proposed deals with the European Union and the United States are expected to further accelerate growth. With the engineering sector aiming for $250 billion in exports by 2030, such agreements are seen as a key lever to scale operations and diversify markets.

Engineering shipments to New Zealand have already shown steady growth, rising around 8% to $140.5 million in 2025-26, up from $129.8 million in the previous fiscal year. The expansion has been driven by automobiles, dairy, machinery and medical and scientific instruments, while metal-based products such as iron and steel, aluminium, and zinc have also made meaningful contributions.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24141.35, up by 145.65 points or 0.61% after trading in a range of 24059.95 and 24144.45. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 4.21%, ITC up by 2.51%, Eicher Motors up by 1.93%, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles up by 1.87% and Tech Mahindra up by 1.80%. On the flip side, JSW Steel down by 1.83%, Hindalco down by 1.37%, Tata Steel down by 0.82%, Asian Paints down by 0.72% and ICICI Bank down by 0.63% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly higher; Hang Seng rose 293.22 points or 1.13% to 25,973.00, KOSPI increased 30.74 points or 0.46% to 6,671.76, Shanghai Composite gained 16.16 points or 0.4% to 4,094.80 and Jakarta Composite added 8.29 points or 0.12% to 7,080.68. On the other hand, Taiwan Weighted lost 110.07 points or 0.28% to 39,411.66 and Straits Times was down by 25.88 points or 0.53% to 4,861.81.