
Stock markets erase early losses on buying in Infosys, ITC
The Hindu
Stock markets rebound as buying in Infosys and ITC offsets early losses, with Sensex and Nifty trading higher.
Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty dropped in early trade on Tuesday (February 17, 2026), but buying in blue-chip stocks Infosys and ITC helped the markets recover the lost ground.
The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 289.72 points to 82,987.43 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty declined 112.45 points to 25,570.30.
Later, both benchmark indices bounced back and were trading in the green. The BSE benchmark quoted 116.08 points higher at 83,393.23, and the Nifty traded 12.90 points up at 25,695.65.
Among the Sensex constituents, Infosys, ITC, HCL Technologies, Asian Paints, Tech Mahindra, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Tata Consultancy Services, IndiGo, Sun Pharmaceuticals, and Larsen & Toubro were the major gainers.
On the other hand, Eternal, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Reliance Industries, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, and Mahindra & Mahindra were the laggards.
In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 index traded nearly 1% lower. Markets in China, Hong Kong and South Korea are remained closed for the Lunar New Year holidays.

The U.S. has launched two investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 against India and other economies to examine practices that may be ‘unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict U.S. commerce’. One probe examines whether countries, including India, are using excess manufacturing capacity to export to the U.S. in a manner that hurts American businesses, while another looks at whether countries have taken ‘sufficient steps’ to prohibit imports of goods produced with forced labour.












