Sensex Falls 300 Points At Open, Nifty Drops Below 24,500; Adani Stocks In Focus

Indian benchmark indices opened lower on Tuesday as elevated crude oil prices weighed on investor sentiment, although gains in IT stocks and renewed foreign institutional buying offered some support.

Investors are also keeping a close watch on corporate earnings, which have so far remained largely resilient. The BSE Sensex opened at 78,509.77 but was trading 315.36 points, or 0.40%, lower at 78,227.08 as of 9:26 am. The Nifty 50 slipped 94.05 points, or 0.38%, to 24,489.75 after opening at 24,575.10.

Elevated Crude Prices Remain A Concern

Crude oil prices continued to remain elevated, adding pressure to Indian equities. Brent crude was trading around $87.71 a barrel, while WTI crude stood at approximately $82.13 in early trade.

India, being heavily dependent on crude oil imports, remains vulnerable to a sustained rise in global oil prices. Higher crude prices can widen the country’s import bill, fuel inflation and put pressure on corporate profit margins.

Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, said the rise in Brent crude remains a concern for the market despite otherwise supportive fundamentals.

He noted that foreign institutional investors turning buyers, better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and stability in the rupee were positive developments that could help keep the market resilient with a mildly positive bias.

Vijayakumar also said strong domestic consumption could support corporate earnings growth through FY27.

IT Stocks Outperform

IT stocks bucked the broader market trend in early trade, limiting the decline in the benchmark indices.

HCLTech led gains among major stocks, rising 1.13%. Titan and Tech Mahindra advanced 0.72% each, while Infosys gained 0.57% and TCS rose 0.52%.

The Nifty IT index was up 0.74% in early trading.

The technology sector remains in focus following recent quarterly results, with investors assessing whether global technology spending is showing signs of recovery. Market participants are also closely tracking broader trends in global IT demand.

Banking, Financial Stocks Weigh On Market

Banking and financial stocks emerged as some of the biggest drags on the benchmark indices.

The Nifty Private Bank index declined 0.72%, while the Nifty Financial Services 25/50 index fell 0.58%. The Nifty PSU Bank index was also down 0.42%.

Among individual stocks, Bajaj Finance dropped 1.20%, Axis Bank declined 1.12%, HDFC Bank slipped 0.42% and Bajaj Finserv fell 0.25%.

IndiGo was among the biggest losers in the major-stock segment, falling 1.75%. UltraTech Cement declined 1.13%, while Bharti Airtel, Adani Ports and Reliance Industries also traded in the red.

Broader Market Mixed

The broader market showed a mixed trend in early trade. The Nifty Smallcap 100 gained 0.42%, while both the Nifty Midcap 50 and Nifty Midcap 100 fell 0.22%.

The Nifty 100 declined 0.32%, the Nifty 200 slipped 0.30% and the Nifty 500 was down 0.22%.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty IT advanced 0.74%, Nifty Consumer Durables gained 0.46% and Nifty Realty edged up 0.07%. Nifty Auto and Nifty Oil & Gas were largely flat, rising 0.04% each.

Meanwhile, Nifty Private Bank fell 0.72%, Nifty Financial Services 25/50 declined 0.58% and Nifty FMCG dropped 0.35%.

FII Buying Offers Support

Renewed buying by foreign institutional investors has emerged as an important source of support for Indian equities despite concerns over crude prices.

Vijayakumar said FIIs have been turning buyers on the back of stronger-than-expected first-quarter results and stability in the rupee.

He also pointed to a shift in global capital away from the technology-driven “chip trade” in South Korea and Taiwan. According to him, this could be encouraging FIIs to increase their exposure to Indian equities after remaining relatively underweight.

He added that strong FCNR(B) inflows could support the rupee, potentially creating room for further foreign investment into Indian markets.

Vijayakumar said FIIs are currently showing interest in sectors including telecom, renewable energy, capital goods and pharmaceuticals, even at relatively high valuations, instead of some banking majors that continue to trade at more attractive valuations.

For Indian equities, the near-term outlook is therefore being shaped by a tug-of-war between elevated crude oil prices and supportive factors such as resilient corporate earnings, strong domestic consumption, rupee stability and renewed foreign buying.