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Indian equity markets are likely to make a cautious start on Monday ahead of release of India’s Industrial and Manufacturing Production data for the month of November. Besides, investors are likely to remain on side-line as they look to the new year for fresh investment triggers. Meanwhile, traders will await for any clues on much awaited India-US bilateral trade deal.

Some of the key factors to be watched:

Union Minister Jitendra Singh underscores acceleration of technology transfer to upscale India’s industrial engagement: Union Minister of State for Science & Technology Jitendra Singh has underscored acceleration of technology transfer to upscale India’s industrial engagement. The minister said that stronger industry partnerships and faster translation of laboratory research into societal and commercial applications are critical to building an Atmanirbhar Bharat.

India’s forex reserves rise to $693 Billion: The Reserve Bank data showed that India's forex reserves jumped by $4.368 billion to $693.318 billion during the week ended December 19.

India imposes anti-dumping duty on two Chinese products: India has imposed anti-dumping duty on two Chinese goods -- a refrigerant gas and certain kinds of steel products, during the month so far to guard domestic players from cheap imports from the neighbouring country. 

Government notifies guidelines of two shipbuilding initiatives with Rs 44,700 crore outlay: The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) has notified guidelines for two major shipbuilding initiatives with a total outlay of over Rs 44,700 crore. The two initiatives -- the Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme (SBFAS) and the Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS) -- are aimed at strengthening the country's domestic shipbuilding capacity and improving global competitiveness.

Coal mining stocks likely to be in focus: The government said that it has amended the rules to streamline approvals for opening coal and lignite mines. The changes remove procedural redundancies to speed up operations while maintaining ongoing regulatory oversight.

On the global front: The US markets ended marginally lower on Friday as many traders remained away from their desks following the Christmas Day holiday on Thursday. Asian markets are trading mostly in green on Monday, ahead of release of Hong Kong’s November numbers for imports, exports and trade balance.

Back home, Indian equity benchmarks ended lower for second consecutive day on Friday due to foreign fund outflows and lack of any major domestic triggers. Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 1,721.26 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data. Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 367.25 points or 0.43% to 85,041.45 and the CNX Nifty was down by 99.80 points or 0.38% to 26,042.30.

Some of the important factors in trade:

India's goods and services exports may grow by 3% to $850 billion in FY26: Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) has said that India's goods and services exports are expected to rise by 3% to $850 billion in FY26. In FY25, the overall exports touched $825 billion ($438 billion in merchandise and $387 billion in services). 

India to replace old income tax regime with simplified one in coming year: With focus shifting towards customs duty rationalisation and procedural simplification in the coming Budget, India has overhauled its tax regime in 2025 with sharp cuts in Goods and Services Tax (GST) rates and a higher income tax exemption limit. 

QCI unveils next-generation quality reforms to strengthen India’s quality ecosystem: The Quality Council of India (QCI) has unveiled a comprehensive set of next-generation quality reforms, designed to strengthen India’s quality ecosystem and advancing the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.

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