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Indian equity benchmarks, Nifty and Sensex, extended their gains on Wednesday, with the Nifty 50 closing above the key 24,000 mark and both benchmark indices rising more than 0.5 per cent, supported by optimism over a potential India-US trade agreement, easing tensions in the Middle East and softer crude oil prices.
The Nifty 50 settled at 24,005.85, up 140.10 points or 0.59 per cent, while the BSE Sensex gained 443.97 points or 0.58 per cent to close at 76,922.64. According to market experts, improving global and domestic sentiment helped support investor confidence. Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, said, "The domestic markets entered H2CY26 on an optimistic footing as multiple headwinds began to abate, with the anticipated US-India trade agreement, easing Middle East tensions, and benign oil prices emerging as the key drivers of positive sentiment. The recovery was broad-based with an outperformance of large caps due to a favourable valuation and an expectation of a partial reversal of FPI sentiment after the last two years of outflows". He further added "While near-term sentiment remains constructive, markets are likely to stay data-dependent, with investors balancing improving domestic fundamentals against evolving global macroeconomic and geopolitical developments." The rally was supported by strong gains in FMCG, banking and media stocks, while information technology stocks remained under pressure. Among sectoral indices on the NSE, Nifty FMCG emerged as the top performer, rising more than 2 per cent. Nifty Media gained 1.80 per cent, Nifty PSU Bank rose 0.89 per cent and Nifty Private Bank advanced 0.8 per cent. However, Nifty IT declined more than 2 per cent, while Nifty Metal fell over 1 per cent. Among the Nifty 50 constituents, Eternal surged around 5 per cent and emerged as one of the top gainers. Other major gainers included Adani Enterprises, Nestle India, Asian Paints and Hindustan Unilever. On the losing side, HCL Technologies declined more than 3 per cent. Tech Mahindra and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) also fell more than 2 per cent during the session. Commodity prices remained supportive for market sentiment. Brent crude oil prices declined 1.15 per cent and were trading at USD 72.10 per barrel at the time of filing this report. Gold prices fell 0.57 per cent to Rs 1,41,741 per 10 grams for 24-carat gold, while silver prices dropped more than 2 per cent to Rs 2,22,190 per kg. Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst at HDFC Securities, said, "The Indian rupee declined for a third consecutive session, pressured by short covering and a strengthening US dollar against major currencies. Additional weakness across Asian currencies further weighed on the rupee. Market sentiment has turned negative following the breach of the 95 level. In the near term, spot USDINR is expected to face resistance at 95.80, while support is seen at 94.60." In the broader Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.92 per cent and Taiwan's weighted index rose 1.90 per cent. However, Singapore's Straits Times slipped 0.18 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 0.64 per cent and South Korea's KOSPI fell 2.08 per cent. (ANI)
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