Mumbai: The Indian stock markets ended Tuesday on a positive note, even though benchmark indices gave up most of their early gains due to fresh geopolitical concerns.
After rising over 1 per cent in early trade, both the Sensex and Nifty settled with modest gains as news emerged of a possible breach in the newly announced ceasefire between Iran and Israel. The Sensex had touched an intra-day high of 83,018.16 but later pared its gains and closed at 82,055.11. It still ended the day with a gain of 158.32 points, or 0.19 per cent.
The Nifty, too, saw volatility through the day. It moved between 25,317.70 and 24,999.70 before settling at 25,044.35, up by 72.45 points or 0.29 per cent. Market experts said that while the initial surge was driven by optimism around the ceasefire announcement, the mood turned cautious after reports hinted at renewed tensions in the Middle East.
"The Nifty's failure to surpass the 25,200-resistance level indicates that the bears are still active and not ready to give in," Ajit Mishra of Religare Broking Limited said. He added that participants are advised to maintain a positive yet cautious stance, with a strong focus on stock selection driven by sectoral trends.
Among the top performers in the Nifty index were Adani Ports, Shriram Finance, Grasim Industries and Tata Steel. These stocks rose by 2.89 per cent. On the other hand, ONGC, IndusInd Bank, Power Grid Corporation, Trent and HCL Technologies were among the biggest losers, falling up to 2.90 per cent. Broader markets also ended higher.
The Nifty Midcap100 index closed up 0.71 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap100 gained 0.72 per cent. "Initial gains in the domestic market, driven by the ceasefire announcement and sharp drop in crude prices, were short-lived as renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East unsettled investor sentiment," Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments Limited stated.
"Going forward, the sustainability of an uptrend will hinge on the strength of domestic earnings, with optimism surrounding the upcoming Q1 results supported by favourable domestic macroeconomics," he added. Volatility in the market eased slightly, as the India VIX -- the volatility index -- dropped 2.88 per cent to close at 13.64.
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