Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty opened on a firm note on Monday (February 23, 2026), led by strong buying in banks and services stocks, tracking a rally in Asian markets.
Analysts said global sentiment was shaped by the U.S. Supreme Court’s verdict that knocked down Donald Trump’s tariffs and termed them “illegal”, a move that could significantly alter global trade dynamics.
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 572.10 points, or 0.69%, to 83,386.81 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty advanced 190.65 points, or 0.75%, to 25,761.90.
Among the Sensex constituents, Adani Ports, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Mahindra & Mahindra, ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries, State Bank of India, and PowerGrid were the major gainers.
Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Tata Consultancy Services, IndiGo, and NTPC were trading in the red.
“The Trump tariff tale has become murkier after the U.S. Supreme Court declared the tariffs illegal. The SC judgement is, indeed, a landmark decision which will seriously impact Trump’s tariff weaponisation strategy,” V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd., said.
He noted that even the new 15% global tariff imposed under Section 122 will be challenged in courts, and the probability of this decision getting annulled is high since Section 122 allows the U.S. President to impose tariffs to tackle a serious balance of payments crisis, which the U.S. doesn’t have now.
“India has already delayed the visit of its trade negotiating team to the U.S. in light of the changed scenario. This is a welcome move,” he added.
“From the market perspective, the USSC decision is indeed a positive, but this is not sufficient to trigger a sustained rally in the market. The market will see only a relief rally, which is unlikely to sustain. The market will respond only to the fundamentals, which are fortunately improving,” Mr. Vijayakumar said.
The broader Asian markets were trading higher, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng benchmark surging over 2%, while South Korea’s Kospi went up nearly 1%.
Markets in Japan and mainland China remained closed due to holidays.
The U.S. equities market ended higher on Friday (February 20).
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined 1.07% to $70.99 per barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹934.61 crore on Friday (February 20), while domestic institutional investors outpaced FIIs by purchasing stocks worth ₹2,637.15 crore, according to the exchange data.
On Friday (February 20), the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 316.57 points to settle at 82,814.71, while NSE Nifty advanced 116.90 points to close at 25,571.25.
Published – February 23, 2026 10:35 am IST
