The BSE Sensex was up 300 points, or 0.42%, at 74,748.57, while the Nifty50 edged up 48.45 points, or 0.21%, to 22,601.80 around 9:45 am.
Asian markets slipped in early trade, with the MSCI Asia ex-Japan down 1.2%, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. Investor sentiment was weighed down by US President Donald Trump’s comments that tariffs on Canada and Mexico are “on time and on schedule,” along with his decision to restrict Chinese investments in strategic sectors.
From the Sensex pack, M&M, Nestle India, Maruti, Zomato, ICICI Bank and HUL opened with gains, while L&T, Power Grid, Tech Mahindra, TCS, and NTPC opened with cuts.
On the sectoral front, Nifty Bank, Auto, Financial Services, and Media opened up to 0.6% higher.
Among individual stocks, IREDA rose 4% in early trade after shareholders approved a proposal to raise up to Rs 5,000 crore through qualified institutional placement of equity shares.
Experts View
“The market is oversold, largecap valuations are fair and short positions in the market are high. This warrants a bounce back particularly if a short covering happens. But the real issue is the relentless FII selling in the cash market which has touched 43200 crores in February so far,” said Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.
“Trump tariff uncertainty will continue to weigh on markets. Domestically we need indications of a growth and earnings recovery in India. Investors should stay with quality stocks which will bounce back when the inevitable recovery happens. Patience is the key,” Vijayakumar added.
Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities, said, “While the street fears that stagflation could be returning in the US, the Trump tariffs set to begin from April 2, could disrupt global trade and trigger retaliatory tariffs. FIIs selling more than Rs 6,000 crore worth of Indian equities on Monday and offloading over Rs 1 lakh crore since the beginning of this year raises concern that how long domestic inflows would continue to offset overseas investor selling.”
Global Markets
Asian shares slid on Tuesday amid worries about US investment curbs on China, while a run-up in the euro faded as investors wait for Germany to sort out the formation of its new government with no major surprises.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 1.3%. Japan’s Nikkei returned from a public holiday with a drop of 0.9%, but shares of its five major trading houses surged thanks to interest from billionaire investor Warren Buffett.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index tumbled 2.3%, extending the fall from Monday after US President Donald Trump signed an order to restrict Chinese investments in strategic areas such as chips, AI and aerospace. Chinese blue chips dropped 0.9%. Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures were flat in Asia.
FII/DII Tracker
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) continued their selling streak, offloading equities worth Rs 6,286 crore on February 24. Meanwhile, Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) extended their buying spree, acquiring equities worth Rs 5,185 crore on the same day.
Crude Oil
Oil prices rose for a second day on Tuesday as the U.S. imposed fresh sanctions on Middle Eastern producer Iran that increased concerns supply might tighten.
Brent crude futures rose 38 cents, or 0.51%, to $75.16 a barrel by 0217 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 43 cents, or 0.61%, to $71.13 a barrel. Both contracts gained in Monday’s session after a $2 drop on Friday.
Currency Watch
The Indian rupee fell 16 paise to 86.88 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 0.01% to 106.6 level.
(With inputs from agencies)
