Indian benchmark indices closed nearly flat on Tuesday after early losses, as IT gains balanced declines in consumer stocks. Weak corporate earnings, foreign outflows, and global trade concerns kept sentiment cautious.
– Sensex fell 29.47 pts to 75,967.39; Nifty 50 lost 14.20 pts to 22,945.30.
– Financials dragged: Nifty Bank (-0.4%), PSU Bank (-0.5%), IndusInd Bank (-2.4%).
– IT stocks rose: IT index gained 1%, led by Persistent Systems (+4.7%) after J.P. Morgan’s bullish call.
– Smallcaps & Midcaps fell: Nifty Smallcap 100 (-1.4%), Midcap 100 (-0.1%).
On Monday, the Sensex and Nifty snapped an eight-session losing streak—their longest since February 2023—to close marginally higher. However, the benchmarks remain about 13% below their all-time highs from September and have declined 3.5% year-to-date, weighed down by weak corporate earnings for two consecutive quarters, persistent foreign outflows, sluggish domestic growth, and global trade uncertainties.
Global Markets: European stocks hit record highs, Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.5%, and China’s markets gained post-Xi’s meeting with business leaders. The rupee slipped 0.1% to 86.95/USD amid dollar demand.
