India Inc has held its ground in the first half of FY26, with rating agencies – Crisil, ICRA and CareEdge – reporting upgrades outpacing downgrades across sectors. Strong domestic demand, policy support and leaner balance sheets have helped corporates absorb external shocks, including steep US tariffs and the currency volatility.

For H1FY26, Crisil Ratings pegged the upgrade-to-downgrade ratio at 2.17x while ICRA reported a sharper 2.9x ratio and CareEdge came in at 2.56x. Infrastructure, hospitality, capital goods and real estate led the upgrade momentum while export-linked sectors and MSME -heavy segments faced pressure.

“The upgrade rate of 14% is higher than the decadal average, and reaffirmation rates remain strong at 80%,” Subodh Rai, chief ratings officer at Crisil Ratings, sa

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