The BSE Sensex surged by 500 points, reaching 66,538, while the Nifty50 traded at 19,827, marking a gain of 136 points around 10.50 am.
Among Sensex stocks, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, L&T, Wipro, and Tata Motors all opened with gains, with Power Grid Corporation opening with losses.
Bank of Baroda shares, however, faced a nearly 4% decline after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) prohibited the bank from adding customers to its mobile app.
In terms of sectors, Nifty Auto registered a 0.7% increase, and Nifty Media saw a 0.9% surge. Banks, financial institutions, IT, FMCG, metal, and pharma sectors all experienced gains. In the broader market, Nifty Midcap100 showed a gain of 0.93%, while Smallcap100 recorded an increase of over 1%.
Experts’ Insights
V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, emphasized the resilience of global markets amid the West Asian crisis. According to him, the key factors supporting the markets include the strength of the US economy, declining US bond yields, and the hope that the Israel-Hamas conflict will remain localized, thereby not affecting crude oil prices. Vijayakumar advised investors to remain cautious, considering the potential for the situation to worsen.
Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities, indicated that Nifty may progress towards 19,766 and later 19,878, with 19,589 serving as near-term support.
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Global Market Trends
Asian markets extended their rally, driven by the belief that the Federal Reserve has concluded its interest rate hike cycle. Additionally, reports of potential economic stimulus in China added to the optimism. Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Taipei, Manila, and Jakarta saw gains in early Asian trade.
On Wall Street, indices closed higher, marking their third consecutive day of gains. Dovish comments from US Federal Reserve officials contributed to lower Treasury yields, while market observers vigilantly monitored developments in the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.4%, the S&P 500 rose by 0.52%, and the Nasdaq Composite surged by 0.58%.
Q2 Earnings and Investment Trends
Investors awaited the September quarter earnings of Tata Consultancy Services, a leading IT company, and Delta Corp. Other IT service providers, including HCL Tech and Infosys, are set to release their results on Thursday.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued their selling streak for the 15th consecutive session on Tuesday, selling Indian shares worth a net of Rs 1,005 crore. In contrast, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares amounting to Rs 1,963 crore.
Oil and Currency Market
Oil prices saw a slight increase as concerns about supply disruptions due to Middle East turmoil persisted. Brent crude rose by 26 cents (0.3%) to reach $87.91 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased by 17 cents (0.2%) to $86.14 a barrel.
The Indian rupee rose by 3 paise to reach $83.22 against the US dollar in early trade. The dollar index, measuring the greenback against a basket of major world currencies, declined by 0.04% to 105.78.