Sensex and Nifty turn flat after strong start

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The Indian equity market began strongly on Tuesday but quickly fell flat after a poor trend in Asian markets. The 30-share BSE Sensex first rose by 128.88 points to 81,178.88, while the NSE Nifty advanced 43.35 points to 24,839.10. However, both indices saw volatility and traded with just minor gains later in the day.

Sensex gainers included Adani Ports & Special Economic Zones, NTPC, UltraTech Cements, Hindustan Unilever, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, and Larsen & Toubro. Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Tata Motors, HCL Technologies, and Tata Consultancy Services were the laggards.

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, stated that the market weakened as a result of negative signals from growing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, heavy selling by foreign investors, and fears about the election results released Monday.

"Market has turned weak responding to negative cues from escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, massive FPI selling and concerns surrounding the election results due on Monday," VK Vijaykumar told PTI.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 8,293.41 crore on Monday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 13,245.12 crore, according to market data. The net selling by FIIs over the last six trading sessions reached Rs 50,011 crore, which was countered by DII buying of Rs 53,203 crore. Vijayakumar remarked that FIIs appear to be adjusting their strategy, preferring to "Sell India, Buy China" due to higher valuations in India compared to lower-cost Chinese companies.

Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Seoul were all down in Asian markets, but Shanghai gained some ground. The US markets likewise finished down on Monday. Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent Crude dropped by 1.42 per cent to USD 79.78 a barrel, after climbing above USD 80 for the first time since August.

The NSE Nifty slid 218.85 points (0.87 per cent) to settle at 24,795.75, while the BSE Sensex fell 638.45 points (0.78 per cent) to conclude at 81,050 on Monday. This was the sixth session in a row that the index had fallen.

Rupee rises 6 paise to 83.94 against US dollar in early trade

In early trade on Tuesday, the rupee strengthened 6 paise to 83.94 against the US dollar, helped by a declining US dollar and a drop in the price of crude oil. However, rapid increases in the local unit were restricted, according to FX traders, by volatility in the domestic equity markets and FII outflows. The rupee began trading at 83.97 versus the US dollar at the interbank foreign exchange and increased to 83.92 before slightly declining to 83.94, up 6 paise from its previous finish.

With PTI inputs