JKB Financial Services Ltd.

As on : 18-Feb-2026

Market Commentary - Mid-Session
18-Feb-2026 14:32

Barometers pare losses; PSU bank shares advance

The domestic equity benchmarks pared all early losses and traded with modest gains in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 25,750 mark. PSU Bank shares extended gains for the third consecutive trading session.

At 14:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 199.31 points or 0.24% to 83,650.27. The Nifty 50 index rose 61.15 points or 0.24% to 25,786.55.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index added 0.38% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.38%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,183 shares rose and 1,928 shares fell. A total of 188 shares were unchanged.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty PSU Bank index rose 1.39% to 9,633.25. The index rose 5.09% in the three consecutive trading sessions.

Punjab National Bank (up 2.84%), Indian Overseas Bank (up 2.23%), Punjab & Sind Bank (up 2.19%), Bank of Maharashtra (up 2.12%), Union Bank of India (up 2.05%), UCO Bank (up 2.01%), Canara Bank (up 1.9%), Indian Bank (up 1.9%), Central Bank of India (up 1.63%) and Bank of India (up 1.14%) rose.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper rose 0.18% to 6.671 compared with the previous session close of 6.659.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.6850 compared with its close of 90.7200 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement rose 0.99% to Rs 152,910.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.21% to 97.32.

The United States 10-year bond yield rose 0.57% to 4.075.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for April 2026 settlement rose 39 cents or 0.58% to $67.81 a barrel.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Spandana Sphoorty Financial shed 0.81%. The company announced that its board has approved the appointment of Avinash Yadav as chief information officer (CIO), effective 17 February 2026.

Power Mech Projects surged 4.06% after the company secured multiple domestic orders worth Rs 1,005 crore from subsidiaries of Adani Power.

GET IN TOUCH