Indian benchmark indices rallied nearly 1% on Tuesday, with the Sensex rising nearly 700 points to reclaim the 72,600 mark, while the Nifty 50 climbed above 22,550, led by strong buying in information technology stocks.
At 10:09 am, the BSE Sensex was trading at 72,568.04, up 643.36 points, or 0.89%, from its previous close of 71,924.68. The NSE Nifty 50 was trading at 22,563.15, up 199.80 points, or 0.89%.
The broader market performance was mixed. The Nifty Midcap 100 advanced 0.47% to 59,111.40, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 declined 0.61% to 19,307.90. India VIX, the market’s volatility gauge, fell 4.78% to 14.52.
IT stocks lead market rally
Information technology stocks led the sectoral rally, with the Nifty IT index surging 3.27% to 29,275.45. The gains came after HCLTech reported second-quarter results that were in line with Street estimates.
Among Sensex constituents, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) was the top gainer, rising 5.36% to ₹2,240.90. HCL Technologies advanced 5.09% to ₹1,282.05, while Tech Mahindra climbed 3.44% to ₹1,520.50. Infosys gained 2.31% to ₹1,040.50.
As many as 24 of the 30 Sensex constituents traded in positive territory. Trent, Bajaj Finserv and HDFC Bank gained up to 2%. Hindustan Unilever added 1.32%, while Bajaj Finance rose 1.11%.
On the other hand, NTPC was the biggest laggard, falling 0.84%. Maruti Suzuki declined 0.52%, while Power Grid Corporation slipped 0.38%. UltraTech Cement, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank also traded marginally lower.
Among sectoral indices, the Nifty FMCG gained 1.02%, the Nifty PSU Bank rose 0.96%, and the Nifty Financial Services 25/50 advanced 0.81%. The Nifty Realty climbed 0.72%, while the Nifty Auto rose 0.57%. The Nifty Media and Nifty Pharma indices were down 0.35% and 0.17%, respectively.
FII selling, inflation remain concerns
V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments Ltd, said there were no triggers to change the prevailing trend of foreign institutional investor (FII) selling and domestic institutional investor (DII) buying in the cash market.
“The restrictions imposed by the RBI by limiting trading in forex derivatives and raising the cost of trading have brought some relief to the rupee,” Vijayakumar said, adding that the currency’s appreciation had helped reduce FII selling.
Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, said Indian equities were likely to remain volatile amid elevated crude oil prices, inflation concerns and geopolitical tensions. He noted that WTI crude was trading in the $92–93 a barrel range, while Brent had climbed above $105, keeping energy costs and their macroeconomic implications in focus.
India’s September CPI inflation rose to 5.54% from 4.82% in August, adding to concerns about price pressures and the RBI’s policy outlook, Ponmudi said.
Geopolitical developments in the Middle East could further unsettle markets. Any escalation that disrupts regional energy supplies could push crude prices higher and trigger renewed volatility across global financial markets, he added.
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