In what was anticipated, Indian markets will be trading on Sunday, February 01, in accordance with the Union Budget 2026-27 presentation, allowing investors real-time reactions to the budget announcements. The bourses, NSE and BSE, through their circulars, notified that markets will trade as per the regular timings.
“On account of the presentation of the Union Budget, members are requested to note that Exchange shall be conducting a live trading session on February 01, 2026, as per the standard market timings,” read the NSE circular.
“Trading Members may note that trading in T+0 Settlement Session and Auction Session for settlement default will not be conducted on Sunday, February 01, 2026,” said BSE in its notification, as it will be a settlement holiday.
However, this is not the first time that the markets will be open on weekends. Last year, Indian stock markets remained open on Saturday, February 1, 2025, to coincide with the presentation of the Union Budget for 2025-26.
Morgan Stanley’s expectations from Indian Budget
“We expect the central government fiscal deficit to be set at 4.2% of GDP in FY27, corresponding to a moderation in debt to 55.1% of GDP. Focus on capex to help create jobs, targeted social sector spending, and a step up in structural reform momentum are likely to be key themes,” said Morgan Stanley.
The global broker expects domestic demand to drive GDP growth, amidst continued tariffs and geopolitics-related global uncertainty weighing on external demand. The sustained strength in high-frequency data in quantitative easing in December 2025 is encouraging – it reinstates domestic demand, carrying the growth baton for India.
The government accounts indicate that the fiscal deficit is up 15.4% YoY YTD in fiscal year 2026 (April-November), even as the 12-month trailing deficit is a tad lower at 4.9% of GDP, vs. 5% of GDP in the corresponding period last year. As outlined, in the brokerage sees, total receipts could slip 40-50bps of GDP – the implied run-rate for overall tax collections remains steep vs. budget estimates, despite the robust trend in non-tax revenues to partially offset the loss.
How have Indian markets performed this week?
The domestic equity benchmarks closed the week on a higher note. The Nifty 50 finished 0.64% higher, tad below 25,700 for the week, while the BSE Sensex ended 0.53% at 83,570.35.