Indian stock markets opened on a mixed note on Tuesday, continuing to face selling pressure in line with trends observed across Asian markets. The Nifty 50 index saw a modest gain of 36 points, or 0.15%, opening at 24,832.20 points, while the Sensex opened at 80,826.56 points, a decline of 223.44 points or 0.28%.
Market analysts attributed the downturn to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the ongoing shift of foreign investments from India to China, adding pressure on Indian equities.
“Market has turned weak responding to negative cues from escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, massive FPI selling and concerns surrounding the election results due today. The most important trigger which pulled the Nifty 5.6 per cent down from the peak has been the sustained big FPI selling during the last six trading days” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.
Sectorally, Nifty Private Bank led the gains with a rise of 0.55% at the opening, followed by a 0.5% uptick in Nifty Bank. On the downside, Nifty FMCG, Nifty Media, and Nifty Metal sectors experienced selling pressure. Among Nifty 50 stocks, 20 advanced, 26 declined, and 4 remained unchanged.
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) sold equities worth ₹50,011 crore in the last six sessions, but this was outpaced by Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs), who bought ₹53,203 crore. Despite DII buying, the market corrected 5.6% due to weak sentiment. Experts noted a ‘Sell India, Buy China’ trend among FPIs, driven by India’s elevated valuations compared to China’s cheaper stocks.
Varun Aggarwal, Managing Director at Profit Idea, highlighted that Nifty’s Monday close at the crucial support level of 24,800 could trigger a temporary bounce. However, a weekly close below this level may lead to further declines, potentially down to 24,000 points.
Asian markets also saw heavy selling on Tuesday, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index plunging over 7.5%, Japan’s Nikkei down by 1.21%, and Taiwan’s weighted index falling 0.76%. (ANI)