Stock market today: Indian equity benchmark indices, BSE Sensex and Nifty50, opened higher in trade on Monday. While BSE Sensex crossed the 80,000 mark, Nifty50 moved above 24,400. At 10:37 AM, BSE Sensex was trading at 80,234.60, up 832 points or 1.05%. Nifty50 was at 24,411.20, up 230 points or 0.95%.
Indian stock markets have broken a five-day losing streak amidst persistent foreign selling and disappointing quarterly corporate results. ICICI Bank led the gains, surpassing profit expectations for the September quarter due to strong loan demand.
The Nifty 50 has fallen nearly 8% from its all-time high on September 27, weighed down by foreign outflows over the past 20 sessions, as investors shift funds to China due to Beijing’s stimulus measures and relatively lower valuations.
Analysts noted that weak earnings have also negatively impacted investor sentiment and contributed to the selling pressure, in addition to foreign selling.
ICICI Bank, SBI, NTPC, Infosys, Bajaj Finserv, and Tata Motors were the top gainers in the Sensex pack, rising by up to 2.7%. On the other hand, L&T, ITC, Tech Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, and JSW Steel opened lower.
IDFC First Bank’s shares dropped 10% after reporting a 73% year-on-year decline in profit, falling to Rs 201 crore for the quarter ended September 2024. DLF shares, however, jumped over 4% after the real estate developer reported higher second-quarter profit driven by sales of newly launched houses.
The Nifty PSU Bank index rose 2%, led by Bank of Baroda, SBI, and PNB. The Nifty Financial Services, IT, Media, and Metal indices also opened higher. The Nifty mid and small-cap indices opened flat in the broader markets.
Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, stated, “The trend of flight to quality is likely to sustain given the good numbers from banking majors like HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank where valuations continue to be fair. Investors can profit from these polarised valuations.”
Vijayakumar added, “The global market structure may turn favourable after the subdued Israeli strikes against Iran avoiding the Iranian oil fields which has resulted in a sharp drop in crude prices. The imminent US presidential elections and the uncertainty associated with that will continue to weigh on markets.”
Hardik Matalia, Derivative Analyst at Choice Broking, said, “After a positive opening, Nifty can find support at 24,150 followed by 24,050 and 23,900. On the higher side, 24,300 can be an immediate resistance, followed by 24,400 and 24,500.”
Asian shares rose Monday, as the yen dipped amid political uncertainty after Japan’s ruling party lost its majority in Parliament’s lower house in weekend elections. Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged 1.6%, South Korea’s Kospi edged up 0.6%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.1%, and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.3%.
On October 25, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 3,036 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 4,159 crore.
Oil prices fell more than $3 a barrel on Monday after Israel’s retaliatory strike on Iran over the weekend avoided Tehran’s oil and nuclear facilities and did not disrupt energy supplies, easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Brent was at $72.70 a barrel, down $3.35, or 4.4%, while WTI slipped $3.27, or 4.6%, to $68.51 a barrel.
The Indian rupee opened flat at 84.08 against the US dollar in early trade. The dollar index, which tracks the movement of the greenback against a basket of six major world currencies, rose 0.26% to 104.53 level.