Stock market today: Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, the Indian equity benchmark indices, opened in green on Thursday. While Nifty50 was near 26,100, BSE Sensex was up over 150 points. At 9:18 AM, Nifty50 was trading at 26,095.80, up 43 points or 0.17%. BSE Sensex was at 85,346.62, up 160 points or 0.19%.Market experts anticipate a steady upward trajectory, whilst maintaining caution as global economic data emerges and markets await the completion of the first phase of the India-US trade agreement.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited says, “The bullish trend in the market is likely to sustain aided by positive triggers. At the fundamental level the picture of ‘strong macros but weak micros’ at the beginning of the year is changing to ‘ strong macros and improving micros’. This fundamental support is aided by the change in perception towards India by leading global banks who now consider India fairly valued and buyable in the context of a resilient economy and improving corporate earnings. The weakening AI trade is another positive for India which can be regarded as an anti-AI trade. FIIs turning buyers in the cash market yesterday is a reflection of this changing perception towards India.” “In the market, this is likely to manifest in preference for and outperformance of largecaps, particularly over small caps whose valuations are hard to justify even after the correction. Bank Nifty, despite the recent run up, has more room to rally since fundamentals and valuations are supportive.”Asian equities moved higher, with the Nikkei 225 advancing 3.7% whilst South Korea’s Kospi, leading the AI sector and amongst this year’s best performers, rose 2.5%. Bitcoin traded above $92,000 amidst improved market sentiment.US equities concluded a volatile session with gains on Wednesday, recovering from recent declines as technology shares advanced prior to Nvidia’s earnings report.Foreign portfolio investors purchased shares worth Rs 1,580 crore net on Wednesday. Domestic institutional investors were net buyers, investing Rs 1360 crore.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)

MUMBAI: Beginning Jan 2026, a PSB alliance digital platform for lending to small business will start functioning at scale opening up a new avenue for MSME financing. The platform will allow any fintech or entity that serves MSMEs, including dealers, to plug in and provide a financing interface for small businesses. At the other end, 12 public sector banks will provide digital loans to these enterprises.Speaking to TOI, Sorabh Dhawan, CEO of PSB Xchange, said the platform aims to disburse Rs 3 lakh crore of loans by 2030.PSB Xchange is designed as a multi-lender system connecting corporates and their channel partners with banks, NBFCs and fintechs. “Created by PSB Alliance in partnership with Veefin Solutions, it enables digital credit delivery across the country. This is the first time India’s largest lenders are coming together on a common exchange to serve MSMEs,” Dhawan said.“I have spent most of my 18-year banking career underwriting and financing MSMEs, and I have seen first-hand the strength and potential of this segment. Supply chain finance can unlock that potential at scale, and I believe PSB Xchange will play a decisive role in transforming access to working capital,” he said.He said that at present only 14-15% of MSMEs currently access formal financing. “Our objective is to expand this coverage and make capital available at competitive rates. By onboarding fintechs, corporates, dealers, distributors, suppliers and lenders on a single platform, we ensure MSMEs can access funds at sub-10% rates, instead of relying on high-cost credit,” he said.Dhawan said the platform has around 70 sourcing partners live and can be used by nearly 9,900 fintechs in the country without integrating individually with each bank.

The US trade deficit narrowed by about 24 per cent in August as sweeping tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump reduced imports, according to a delayed Commerce Department report released Wednesday. According to Associated Press, citing the report, the trade gap fell to $59.6 billion in August from $78.2 billion in July. Imports declined 5 per cent to $340.4 billion as businesses slowed purchases from abroad after stockpiling goods ahead of tariffs that took effect on August 7. Exports rose 0.1 per cent to $280.8 billion. Trump has upended decades of US free-trade policy by levying broad duties on most trading partners as well as on products such as steel, copper and automobiles. He argues that chronic trade deficits reflect foreign nations exploiting the US. Economists say tariffs are contributing to inflation by raising costs that importers largely pass to consumers. Despite August’s pullback, the trade deficit has widened in 2025, reaching $713.6 billion through August — up 25 per cent from $571.1 billion in the same period last year. A narrower trade gap typically supports economic growth because imports subtract from gross domestic product. “August’s smaller trade deficit will be a tailwind for third-quarter real GDP, since it means more US spending went to domestically-produced goods and services,” said Bill Adams, chief economist at Comerica Bank. The release was delayed due to the government shutdown. Public anger over living costs contributed to Democratic gains in the November 4 elections. Days later, Trump rolled back tariffs on items such as beef, coffee, tea, fruit juice, cocoa, spices, bananas, oranges, tomatoes and some fertilisers, acknowledging their effect on prices. The Supreme Court is weighing the legality of the tariffs. During a November 5 hearing, justices questioned whether a president can impose open-ended duties under emergency powers without approval from Congress.