Mumbai, Nov 18 (PTI) Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade on Tuesday due to emergence of profit-taking in-tandem with a weak trend in global equity markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 292.95 points to 84,658 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 83.3 points to 25,930.15.

From the Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Tech Mahindra, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Larsen & Toubro were among the major laggards.

However, Bharat Electronics, Bharti Airtel, Axis Bank, and Adani Ports were among the gainers.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index were trading sharply lower.

US markets ended in negative territory on Monday.

"Tuesday may bring pockets of volatility due to weekly F&O expiry and soft global cues, yet the broader tone stays constructive, buoyed by political stability, cooling inflation, soft crude, trade-deal optimism and FII buying," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

The first phase of the proposed India-US bilateral trade agreement (BTA) is "nearing closure" and would address the hefty 50 per cent tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Indian goods, in addition to resolving America's market access issues, a government official said on Monday.

The US has imposed a 25 per cent reciprocal tariff and another 25 per cent on Indian goods entering American markets for buying Russian crude oil.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 442.17 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) also bought stocks worth Rs 1,465.86 crore in the previous trade.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dipped 0.47 per cent to USD 63.90 per barrel.

Rallying for the sixth consecutive day on Monday, the Sensex climbed 388.17 points, or 0.46 per cent, to close at 84,950.95. The Nifty edged higher by 103.40 points, or 0.40 per cent, to settle at 26,013.45. PTI SUM TRB

Bilateral trade agreement progress could remove punitive tariffs and address reciprocal trade sanctions, affecting market sentiment. Proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement negotiations are reported as nearing closure, aimed at addressing substantial reciprocal tariffs and resolving US market access issues to secure tariff relief and improved market entry for Indian goods; the report links these trade-policy developments to contemporaneous equity-market volatility, institutional investor flows, and a modest decline in the global crude benchmark.