Indian stocks steady as lower oil aids sentiment; financials counter IT drag

Cyient

26/08/2026 06:59

** India's stock benchmarks Nifty 50 .NSEI flat, Sensex .BSESN up 0.2% and broader small-caps .NIFSMCP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 rise 0.7% and 0.3%, as a drop in oil prices support sentiment
** Other Asian markets advance on hopes that the critical Strait of Hormuz may reopen soon after Iran said it restarted talks with Oman to manage the waterway
** Eight of the 16 major sectors rise
** State-owned banks .NIFTYPSU and private banks .NIFPVTBNK gain 1.1% each; banks .NSEBANK and financials .NIFPVTBNK add 0.7% each
** Gains in financials offset by a 0.8% drop in the IT index .NIFTYIT after rising 0.8% in two sessions 
** Investors await Nvidia's NVDA.O quarterly results later in the day, with the focus on whether the massive AI spending boom is sustainable
** Among stocks, Cyient CYIE.NS gains 4.6% as multiple brokerages reiterate bets of large-deal wins and margin improvement after analyst day
** Hindustan Zinc HZNC.NS climbs 4.8%; Jefferies reiterates "buy", hikes price target and earnings estimates to factor in higher zinc and silver prices 
** Gujarat Energy GJAA.NS falls 1.5% after Morgan Stanley downgrades on competition risks

 (Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru)
 ((bharath.rajeswaran@thomsonreuters.com; +91 9769003463;))