Markets opened on a firm note Monday morning, buoyed by improving global sentiment after the US Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s broad emergency tariffs in a 6-3 ruling on February 20. The Sensex, which closed at ₹82,814.71 on Friday, opened at ₹82,906.83 and climbed to ₹83,336.04, up ₹521.33 or 0.63 per cent, by 9.45 am. The Nifty 50, which had closed at ₹25,571.25, opened flat and rose to ₹25,731.00, gaining ₹159.75 or 0.62 per cent in early trade.
The Supreme Court’s ruling invalidated an estimated $160–175 billion in duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). However, President Trump swiftly invoked Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose a fresh 10–15 per cent global tariff for 150 days. “The Trump tariff tale has become murkier after the US Supreme Court declared the tariffs illegal,” said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited. “Even the new 15 per cent global tariff imposed under Section 122 will be challenged in courts and the probability of this decision getting annulled is high.”
For India, the reset effectively brings tariffs on Indian exports down to around 10 per cent for now. India has already delayed the visit of its trade negotiating team to the United States in light of the changed scenario. On the macro front, US Q4 2025 GDP growth came in at 1.4 per cent annualised, well short of the 2.5 per cent consensus, weighed down by a 16.6 per cent contraction in federal spending.
“The US SC decision is indeed a positive, but this is not sufficient to trigger a sustained rally,” Vijayakumar added. “The market will respond only to fundamentals, which are fortunately improving.”
GIFT Nifty, which had surged sharply Friday night following the ruling, moderated slightly in early trade Monday. “While some profit-booking is visible after the initial spike, the broader indication still suggests a positive start for the Nifty this week,” said Hariprasad K, SEBI-registered Research Analyst and Founder of Livelong Wealth. Technically, Nifty’s immediate pivot sits at 25,500, with resistance at 25,700–25,750. A sustained move above 25,800 could open the path toward 26,000.
Banking stocks led the recovery. The Bank Nifty closed at ₹61,172 on Friday, up 432 points, and continues to trade above its 20-, 50-, 100-, and 200-day exponential moving averages. “As long as 60,600 holds, the broader bias remains positive, with banking likely to continue outperforming the wider market,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, a SEBI-registered trading and wealth tech firm.
Among the top Nifty 50 gainers, Adani Ports led with a 2.86 per cent rise to ₹1,554.80, followed by Axis Bank, up 2.02 per cent to ₹1,395.90. HDFC Life gained 1.71 per cent to ₹741.10, Adani Enterprises rose 1.69 per cent to ₹2,197.30, and SBI Life added 1.55 per cent to ₹2,112.20, reflecting broad strength in financial services and infrastructure.
On the losing side, ONGC was the worst performer, falling 2.14 per cent to ₹272.70, as US-Iran tensions pushed crude oil prices higher, creating a paradox for upstream energy stocks despite the commodity rally. Cipla dropped 1.57 per cent to ₹1,320.00. Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited fell 1.37 per cent to ₹27.35. IT heavyweights Infosys and Wipro slipped 1.23 per cent and 0.88 per cent to ₹1,336.60 and ₹208.02 respectively, extending pressure on the technology sector, which shed over 2 per cent last week.
On the institutional flows front, Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth ₹934 crore on February 20, while Domestic Institutional Investors provided support by purchasing equities worth ₹2,637 crore. “Fresh long positions should ideally be considered only after a sustained breakout of the Nifty above 26,000,” said Aakash Shah, Technical Research Analyst at Choice Equity Broking.
A separate corporate development weighed on sentiment in the banking sector. IDFC First Bank disclosed a significant internal fraud at its Chandigarh branch, with the alleged quantum estimated at approximately ₹590 crore. The bank has initiated a forensic audit by an independent external agency. “Struck down, reloaded — Trump’s tariff saga continues,” noted Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities, adding that GIFT Nifty trading around 1 per cent higher pointed to a gap-up open.
Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities, sounded a note of caution. “As long as the market remains below the 50-day SMA or 25,770/83200, the weak sentiment is likely to persist,” he said, flagging that the market remains in a lower-top formation on daily charts.
Published on February 23, 2026