Mumbai, June 9: Indian equities traded higher on Tuesday in the morning trade, supported by improving sentiment after signs of a pause in hostilities between Iran and Israel.

Sensex rose as much as 0.7 per cent or over 500 points to hit an intraday high of 74,035.41 in early trade, while Nifty gained 0.6 per cent or more than 100 points to touch 23,259.45.

On the sectoral front, Nifty MidSmall Financial Services emerged as the top gainer, rising over 1 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty, which also advanced more than 1 per cent. Nifty Auto climbed 0.9 per cent. Banking stocks traded higher as well, with the PSU Bank and Private Bank indices gaining up to 0.8 per cent.

Category-wise, microcap, midcap and smallcap indices outperformed the benchmarks. Nifty Microcap 250 rose more than 1 per cent, while Nifty Midcap 50, Midcap 100 and Midcap 150 gained up to nearly 1 per cent.

Market volatility eased, with India VIX declining more than 4 per cent to around 16.

According to market experts, the decline in Brent crude prices to below $94 per barrel is positive for Indian equities. They, however, cautioned that there is no certainty that the fragile peace between Iran and Israel will hold.

A US federal judge striking down President Donald Trump’s H-1B visa fee hike is also a mild positive for Indian IT stocks, experts said.

“The bulls are too weak to stage a strong comeback, while the bears remain strong enough to press selling on rallies. The sustained selling by FIIs shows no sign of fatigue. Large-cap valuations are fair and, in segments like banking, attractive, largely due to FII selling,” analysts said.

However, elevated volatility and lingering global uncertainty are expected to keep traders cautious in the near term, they added.

Meanwhile, Iran and Israel said they had paused military strikes against each other following an appeal by U.S. President Donald Trump for an immediate de-escalation. However, Tehran warned that it would resume attacks if Israel continued targeting Hezbollah positions in Lebanon.

Crude oil prices traded lower, with international benchmark Brent crude declining about 1 per cent to $93 per barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell around 1 per cent to $90 per barrel.

Asian markets traded largely in positive territory, with Japan’s Nikkei rising more than 1 per cent and South Korea’s KOSPI surging nearly 5 per cent. Other major regional indices were also trading higher.

In the US, Wall Street ended in green overnight, with the S&P 500 closing 0.3 per cent higher and the Nasdaq settling nearly 1 per cent higher.

Mumbai, May 27: Domestic equity markets traded on a muted note in early deals on Wednesday amid mixed global cues and a decline in crude oil prices.

Sensex was trading at 76,050, up 40 points or 0.05 per cent in the morning session, while Nifty rose 20 points or 0.08 per cent to 23,932. Earlier, the benchmark indices opened at 75,939.86 and 23,880.35, respectively.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Metal emerged as the top gainer, climbing 1.59 per cent, followed by Nifty Cement, which advanced 0.83 per cent. Nifty Media, Realty and Consumer Durables also traded higher, rising up to 0.67 per cent.

On the other hand, Nifty Oil & Gas was the top loser, falling 0.66 per cent. While private banks, financial services and IT indices also traded in the red, declining up to 0.33 per cent.

Among Nifty stocks, selling pressure was visible in select heavyweight counters, with Coal India dropping over 4 per cent and ONGC slipping nearly 3 per cent. HDFC Bank, Infosys and Wipro also remained under pressure.

Meanwhile, the volatility index India VIX gained 0.68 per cent to trade around 16.

According to analysts, the near-term market tone remains cautious but stable, as recent profit booking at higher levels indicates some consolidation after the sharp recovery phase.

“Despite intermittent weakness, controlled volatility and balanced market breadth suggest that broader sentiment has not deteriorated significantly,” they added.

Meanwhile, Iran on Tuesday accused the United States of violating the ceasefire by carrying out strikes near the disputed Strait of Hormuz, while Washington maintained that the attacks were defensive in nature.

In the commodity market, crude oil prices declined, with international benchmark Brent crude falling 1.73 per cent to $97.85 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped over 2 per cent to $91.87 per barrel.

In Asia, markets traded mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined nearly 1 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s KOSPI rose up to almost 5 per cent.

Overnight in the US, Wall Street ended higher, with the S&P 500 gaining 0.61 per cent and the Nasdaq closing 1.19 per cent higher.

Mumbai, May 26: Indian equity markets traded flat in morning trade on Tuesday after fresh US strikes in southern Iran targeting boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites.

In early trade, Sensex was at 76,339.29, down 150 points or 0.20 per cent, while Nifty slipped 45 points or 0.19 per cent to 23,986.40. Earlier in the day, the benchmark indices opened at 76,224.14 and 24,004.10, respectively.

Among sectoral indices, IT, chemicals, media, PSU banks and metal stocks traded in positive territory.

Nifty IT rose 0.61 per cent, while Nifty Chemicals gained 0.58 per cent and Nifty Media advanced 0.54 per cent.

On the downside, consumer durables, healthcare, cement and realty indices were under pressure. Nifty Consumer Durables emerged as the top sectoral loser, falling 0.57 per cent, while Nifty Healthcare, Nifty Cement and Nifty Realty declined up to 0.3 per cent.

From the Nifty basket, InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) declined over 1 per cent, emerging as one of the top laggards on the benchmark indices. Other notable losers included SBI Life Insurance Company, Max Healthcare Institute, Titan Company, Bharti Airtel, Eternal Ltd and Trent, which fell up to 1 per cent.

In the broader market, small-cap and mid-cap indices outperformed. Nifty Smallcap 100 climbed 0.59 per cent, while Nifty Midcap 150 gained 0.13 per cent.

Meanwhile, the volatility tracker India VIX slipped 1.43 per cent.

Market experts said that despite ongoing negotiations aimed at ending the West Asia conflict, there are no indications of an immediate resolution.

They noted that the recent US “self-defence strikes” in southern Iran have temporarily dampened sentiment, although markets are not viewing the development as the beginning of another phase of military escalation.

According to experts, investor risk appetite remains strong, with markets rallying whenever there are signs of easing tensions and a decline in crude oil prices.

“The sharp rally in the previous session reflected optimism about the resilience of the domestic economy,” they added.

However, experts believe that a resolution of the conflict and a further decline in crude oil prices could help ease macroeconomic pressures facing the economy.

Meanwhile, crude oil prices rose, with international benchmark Brent crude gaining 1.17 per cent to $98.39 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude climbed more than 3 per cent to $93.90 per barrel.