Sensex, Nifty Trade Flat As Uncertainty In West Asia Grips Investors

Indian equity markets started Thursday’s session on a positive note but slipped shortly due to heightened tensions in West Asia.

At around 10:30 AM, Sensex was trading around 82 points lower while Nifty was down 10 points compared to the previous closing levels.

However, during the early trade hours, both the indices were trading higher, supported by strong buying in information technology stocks, foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows and a decline in global crude oil prices.

The 30-share BSE Sensex had gained 75.71 points to trade at 77,726.62 during early deals, while the NSE Nifty50 had advanced 26.90 points to 24,275.85.

IT stocks led the market gains, with major technology companies providing support to the indices. From the Sensex basket, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies and Tata Consultancy Services were among the leading performers. Mahindra & Mahindra and Sun Pharma also traded higher.

However, some stocks witnessed selling pressure. Adani Ports, Asian Paints, Eternal and Bharat Electronics were among the major laggards in early trade.

Investor sentiment received support from foreign fund activity, with Foreign Institutional Investors purchasing equities worth ₹2,981.87 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

Brent crude, the global benchmark, declined 1.26% to $89.60 per barrel. Lower oil prices are generally positive for India as the country imports a significant portion of its crude requirements, helping ease inflation and external pressure.

Asian markets showed a mixed trend. South Korea’s KOSPI, Shanghai’s SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng traded lower, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 moved higher. Meanwhile, US markets ended sharply lower on Wednesday following concerns over the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook.

Wall Street indices declined amid renewed selling in technology stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.19%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq dropped 1.52% and 1.74%, respectively.

In the previous session on Wednesday, Indian markets had posted strong gains. The Sensex surged 888.68 points, or 1.16%, to close at 77,654.60, while the Nifty climbed 264.85 points, or 1.10%, to settle at 24,250.20.