Mumbai, Aug 19: Domestic equity market benchmarks opened on a flat note on Wednesday with crude oil prices surging to almost $92 and rising global bond yields dampening appetite for risk assets.

Sensex opened at 77,218.05, down 17.41 points or 0.02 per cent, while Nifty started the session at 24,152.05, declining 2.85 points or 0.01 per cent.

Sectorally, IT stocks led gains among sectoral indices in early trade with Nifty IT rising 0.82 per cent, while most other sectors remained subdued. Nifty MidSmall IT & Telecom gained 0.59 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty and Nifty REITS & Realty, which rose up to 0.2 per cent each.

Among the declining indices, Nifty Metal fell 0.35 per cent, followed by Nifty Auto which declined 0.14 per cent. Nifty MidSmall Healthcare dropped 0.10 per cent, Nifty Pharma, Nifty Chemicals and Nifty500 Healthcare declined 0.09 per cent each.

Analysts said the ongoing weakness was primarily driven by rising crude oil prices and higher bond yields globally.

They said uncertainty over the Middle East conflict has pushed crude prices higher, raising concerns over inflation and putting upward pressure on bond yields adding that US 30-year yields are at their highest level since 2007.

However, strong domestic fundamentals, improving GDP and earnings growth prospects for FY27 and robust domestic liquidity are helping the Indian market remain resilient.

Long-term investors could use the weakness to accumulate quality growth stocks, particularly as momentum remains stronger in the mid- and small-cap segments, according to the market experts.

Additionally, Asian markets also declined amid continued weakness in semiconductor stocks, while crude oil prices rose to their highest level in more than three weeks as international benchmark Brent crude traded around $92 per barrel after Iran took a tougher stance and said the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed, while the US ruled out extending the ceasefire.

New Delhi : Larsen & Toubro Technology Services (LTTS) on Wednesday said it has won a five-year contract worth more than $75 million from a leading global technology enterprise.

In a regulatory filing, the company said the engagement will involve deploying its Engineering Intelligence (EI) capabilities across the client’s product development and engineering lifecycle.

In addition, the deal will cover product engineering, software development, testing and validation, sustenance engineering, platform operations and other digital engineering services, LTTS said.

Under the engagement, the company will also use its suite of Engineering Intelligence solutions to establish a dedicated engineering centre for the client’s technology and digital functions.

However, it did not disclose the name of the client — citing contractual obligations. It said the contract was awarded by an international entity and would be executed over a period of five years.

The latest order comes as LTTS continues to expand its engineering and artificial intelligence capabilities across global markets.

Moreover, the company had reported a 17.4 per cent year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 352 crore for the first quarter of the current financial year. While revenue during the quarter rose 11.5 per cent to Rs 2,940 crore.

However, on a constant-currency basis revenue growth stood at 1.9 per cent, compared with 12.8 per cent in the corresponding period last year.

LTTS last week also announced the launch of AgenticIQ, an end-to-end agentic artificial intelligence platform aimed at enabling engineering and manufacturing companies to deploy autonomous AI agents at scale.

Shares of LTTS on Wednesday traded at Rs 3,517.65 apiece on the BSE in early deals.

LTTS is a subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro and provides engineering research and development and digital engineering services to customers across industries.

New Delhi, Aug 18: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the fifth edition of SEMICON India 2026 on September 17 here as India seeks to accelerate the development of its domestic semiconductor ecosystem, an official statement said on Tuesday.

The three-day conference and exhibition — themed Silicon to Systems: Building the Ecosystem — will be held between September 17 and September 19 and is being jointly organised by the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) — under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) — and global industry association SEMI, the ministry said.

The event is expected to bring together policymakers, global semiconductor companies, industry executives, researchers, academics, start-ups and students to discuss developments across the semiconductor and electronics value chain.

In addition, the Centre recently approved Semicon 2.0 to strengthen the country’s semiconductor manufacturing and supply-chain capabilities.

The government said it is also supporting semiconductor research, innovation and design through access to advanced design tools for more than 332 academic institutions and 105 start-ups.

Moreover, 24 start-ups have been approved under the Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme.

However, India’s semiconductor ambitions have gained momentum under the Semicon India Programme with 12 projects approved under Semicon 1.0 to help build a domestic semiconductor ecosystem, according to the ministry.

S. Krishnan, Secretary, MeitY, said the 2026 edition comes at a significant stage in India’s semiconductor journey, noting that three of the 12 projects approved under Semicon 1.0 have commenced commercial production.

“The announcement of Semicon 2.0 with six major pillars further strengthens India’s commitment to build a robust and resilient semiconductor ecosystem,” he said.

Ajit Manocha, President and Chief Executive Officer of SEMI, said India is well positioned to expand its role in the global semiconductor industry through its talent pool, policy support and long-term vision.

Ashok Chandak, President of SEMI India and IESA, said the event reflects India’s efforts to build a comprehensive semiconductor value chain and has become a key platform for collaboration among industry leaders, policymakers, investors and researchers.

Additionally, the exhibition is expected to feature more than 500 exhibitors, including over 240 international companies, with delegations from more than 40 countries.

According to the ministry, the event will also include six country pavilions, 10 state government pavilions, a start-up pavilion, innovation showcase, start-up pitch competition, student hackathon and workforce development pavilion.