The growth in India's services sector activity surged to a 10-month high in June, driven by robust demand in both the domestic and export markets, according to an HSBC survey released on Thursday.

The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index, compiled by S&P Global, rose from 58.8 in May to 60.4 in June. The PMI threshold of 50.0 is neutral mark that separates growth from contraction on the index.

New orders expanded at the quickest rate since August 2024. Services companies benefited most from the continued strength of the domestic market, alongside a marked increase in new export business. Overseas demand particularly improved from the Asian, Middle Eastern and US markets, according to panel members, the survey states.

The Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Thursday amid positive global cues, as buying was seen in the IT, pharma and auto sectors in the early trade.

At around 9.25 am, Sensex was trading 68.28 points or 0.08 per cent up at 83,477.97 while the Nifty added 19.30 points or 0.08 per cent at 25,472.70.

Analysts said they are only consolidating the bullish rectangle breakout and as long as the 25,200-25,270 area is protected, bulls are merely taking a breather.

“Under 25,200, we risk 25,000. On the upside, the recent swing high at 25,670 is where the bullish trigger lies," said Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research, Axis Securities.

With the deadline for the US tariff pause expiring next week, it will be interesting to see if the current optimism globally holds up.

The Ministry of Steel clarified on Wednesday that it has issued Quality Control Orders for the enforcement of 151 BIS Standards. The last Quality Control Order was issued in August 2024, and no new Quality Control Order has been issued since then.

The ministry made it clear that its order dated June 13 is merely to clarify that in the case of intermediate material for manufacturing of final products under BIS Standards, steel products will also have to follow BIS Standards prescribed for such intermediate products.

The stock markets ended lower on Wednesday, as investor sentiment remained cautious due to US President Donald Trump's firm stand on the upcoming tariff deadline.

The nervousness led to a risk-off mood among investors, pulling the benchmark indices lower.

After rising to an intra-day high of 83,935.29, the Sensex lost momentum and closed at 83,409.69, down 287.6 points or 0.34 per cent.

The Nifty also declined by 88.45 points or 0.35 per cent to end the day at 25,453.4.

As the monsoon continues its journey across the country, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday predicted light to heavy rainfall in Delhi and several other regions over the next week.

IMD scientist Akhil Shrivastava, said the national capital can expect sporadic rainfall in the coming days.

"Monsoon officially arrived in Delhi on June 29, accompanied by light showers. Our forecast suggests that during the next seven days, Delhi may experience light to heavy rainfall. There will also be periods of partly cloudy skies, with chances of thunderstorms and lightning," he said.

Shrivastava emphasised that while rain will occur, it is likely to remain on the lighter side in Delhi for most of the week.

Moving beyond the capital, the IMD has issued significant warnings for several states expecting intense rainfall.

India's manufacturing activity accelerated to a 14-month high in June, triggered by a surge in international sales that boosted production and led to record-breaking hiring, according to a latest survey.

The HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, compiled by S&P Global, rose to 58.4 in June from May's 57.6. The headline figure was above its long-run average of 54.1 and pointed to a substantial improvement in the health of the sector.

“Companies also welcomed one of the fastest increases in external orders in over 20 years of survey history. Goods producers lifted input buying to the greatest extent in 14 months, which supported a further expansion in stocks of purchases," the survey stated.

India’s GDP growth is projected at 6.3 per cent in current fiscal (FY26) despite external headwinds, an HSBC report said on Wednesday, adding that with 70 per cent of the indicators growing positively, the Q2 growth (April-June) is trending at 6.8-7 per cent, with the informal sector taking the lead.

HSBC Global Investment Research has updated its 100 indicators framework, which maps high frequency indicators to various sectors, and gives a thorough and sequential read on growth.

“After an amazing April came a measured May with 67 per cent of the indicators growing positively (compared to 72 per cent in April). Still, from a quarterly perspective, Q2 is doing better than Q1 2025 (70 per cent vs 67 per cent),” the findings showed.

The mutual fund exposure in the non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) grow 32.5 per cent to reach Rs 2.77 lakh crore in May, according to a new report.

This year-on-year growth was driven by commercial papers (CPs) and corporate debt, which remained over Rs 2 lakh crore for 14 consecutive months, according to a CareEdge Ratings report.

The previous records were Rs 2.69 lakh crore in April this year and Rs 2.64 lakh crore in July 2018.

However, the share of NBFC credit in total bank credit decreased from 9.3 per cent in May 2024 to 8.5 per cent in May this year, the data showed.

The mutual fund industry’s total assets under management (AUM) rose to Rs 72.2 lakh crore in May from Rs 70 lakh crore in April. The industry witnessed net inflows of Rs 29,108 crore during the month, with 65 per cent flows from the equity category, according to the latest AMFI data.

The State Bank of India (SBI) has decided to report the loan account of Reliance Communications as “fraud” in a case that dates back to August 2016.

Reliance Communications said in an exchange filing that this disclosure is being made pursuant to the rules of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

“This is to inform you that Company has received letter dated June 23, 2025 (received on June 30, 2025) from SBI (marked to he Company and its erstwhile director - Shri Anil Dhirajlal Ambani), inter alia, stating that SBI has decided to report the loan account of the Company as “fraud” and to report the name of Shri Anil Dhirajlal Ambani (erstwhile director of the Company) to the RBI, as per the extant RBI guidelines,” the company said in the BSE filing.

Reliance Communications is part of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group. The company is undergoing corporate insolvency resolution process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

The Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Wednesday amid positive global cues, as buying was seen in the IT and auto sectors in the early trade.

At around 9.23 am, Sensex was trading 225.5 points or 0.27 per cent up at 83,922.79 while the Nifty added 58.75 points or 0.23 per cent at 25,600.55.

According to analysts, after breaking the 24,500-25,000 range, Nifty has moved to the new range of 25,200-25,800.

Positive news about a possible trade deal between India and US can help break the upper limit of the range but it would be difficult to sustain the Nifty at higher levels for long, they added.

Nifty Bank was down 45.20 points or 0.08 per cent at 57,414.25 in early trade. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was trading at 59,809.25 after adding 59.20 points or 0.25 per cent. Nifty Smallcap 100 index was at 19,082.10 after climbing 26.40 points or 0.14 per cent.