Stock market today: Indian equity benchmarks Nifty50 and BSE Sensex rallied in opening trade on Tuesday after a day of massive selloff. Hopes of an early halt to the US-Iran war led to the stock market rebounding. While Nifty50 went above 22,800, BSE Sensex was up over 1,100 points. At 9:16 AM, Nifty50 was trading at 22,848.45, up 336 points or 1.49%. BSE Sensex was at 73,806.09, up 1,110 points or 1.53%.Stock markets ended sharply lower on Monday as escalating tensions in the US-Iran conflict, rising crude oil prices and the rupee hitting fresh record lows weighed heavily on investor sentiment.Market mood, however, improved after trading hours when US President Donald Trump announced that planned military strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure would be deferred following “productive conversations” with Tehran.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited says, “Politics is turning out to be as volatile as the market. President Trump signalled a 5-day halt to attacks on Iran and talked about ‘productive’ talks with the Iranian leadership. Immediately Iran’s foreign ministry denied this. Later they acknowledged that there are attempts to ‘get diplomacy going’ through the mediation of some countries. Brent crude crashed by 10% to $100 levels on news of positive initiatives to end the hostilities. The market, it appears, is factoring in an end to the war as reflected in the August US oil futures trading at $80. However, in the near-term there will be excessive volatility in response to news regarding the war and events on the war front.”“A major drag on the market now is the huge selling by FIIs despite the sharp correction in the market. The continuing weakness in the rupee is the main factor behind this sustained selling by FIIs. Therefore, if some sort of stability is to emerge in the market, rupee should stabilize first. IT and pharmaceutical segments are likely to remain resilient assisted by rupee depreciation.” Globally, US markets closed with gains of over 1% after oil prices declined on the back of Trump’s decision to delay strikes on Iran’s power infrastructure. Asian equities also advanced, while the dollar showed volatility and oil prices remained under pressure following the easing of fears around a major energy supply disruption.However, crude prices moved higher again in early Tuesday trade amid concerns over supply, after Iran denied holding any discussions with the United States to end the conflict, contradicting Trump’s statement that a resolution could be near.Gold prices recovered partially after the announcement to postpone US strikes provided some relief following the metal’s recent sharp decline during the conflict.Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers of Indian equities, offloading shares worth Rs 10,414.23 crore on Monday, while domestic institutional investors provided some support by purchasing equities worth Rs 12,033.97 crore.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)
