Indian equity benchmarks opened in positive territory on Monday morning, defying a string of headwinds including elevated crude oil prices and continued foreign institutional selling, as GIFT Nifty signalled a gap-up start for domestic indices. The BSE Sensex opened at ₹76,856.05 and was trading at ₹77,046.69, up ₹382.48 or 0.50% as of 9:16 am, while the NSE Nifty 50 opened at ₹23,945.45 and was trading at ₹24,017.95, up 120 points or 0.50%. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, GIFT Nifty was trading around 24,140, up nearly 185 points ahead of market open, indicating strong pre-market sentiment despite Friday's decline.
Indian equity benchmarks had declined nearly 1% on Thursday, April 23, with NSE's Nifty falling 205.05 points or 0.8% to close at 24,173.05 and BSE's Sensex declining 852.49 points or 1.1% to end at 77,664. This decline mirrored losses in Asian benchmarks as Brent oil prices inched above $100, driving up cautious sentiment among participants. The decline was attributed to investor caution over surging crude oil prices and a weak rupee against the US dollar, with analysts noting that markets are witnessing profit booking at higher levels following the recent 10% rally in indices. The India's Volatility Index (VIX) gained 1.6% to 18.6 levels, indicating some caution among traders, with the measure up over 102% since the start of this year.
Sun Pharma emerged as the top gainer on Nifty 50, rising 3.28% to ₹1,673.60 from its previous close of ₹1,620.40, with the pharmaceutical sector offering shelter as IT stocks bear the brunt of selling pressure following weak guidance from index heavyweights. Adani Ports rose 1.90% to ₹1,615.20 against its previous close of ₹1,585.10, while JSW Steel gained 1.47% to ₹1,274.10 from ₹1,255.70. UltraTech Cement added 1.46% to trade at ₹12,173 up from ₹11,998, and Kotak Mahindra Bank climbed 1.38% to ₹375.95 from ₹370.85. However, Axis Bank was the sharpest decliner, sliding 4.12% to ₹1,309.60 from its previous close of ₹1,365.90, with over 1.1 crore shares changing hands, while Shriram Finance fell 2.83% to ₹982.65 and Bajaj Finance dipped 0.28% to ₹919.00.
Crude oil prices continued to remain a key pressure point, with June Brent crude futures trading at $100.31 per barrel, up 1.19%, while WTI June futures stood at $95.20, up 0.85% as of 9:14 am on Monday, with no visible progress in US–Iran negotiations. On the Multi Commodity Exchange, May crude oil futures were trading at ₹8,994, up 2.01% from the previous close of ₹8,817, and June futures were at ₹8,592, up 1.90% from ₹8,432. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, flagged a structural shift in global capital flows driven by the AI trade, noting that one stock in Taiwan (TSMC) and two stocks in South Korea (Samsung and SK Hynix) account for lion's share of the portfolio flows into these countries, with India standing to benefit when that reversal occurs.
Market analysts anticipate range-bound trading until strong triggers emerge, with Nifty likely to consolidate in the 23,700-24,500 range according to Chandan Taparia, head of Derivatives & Technicals at Motilal Oswal Financial Services. Aakash Shah, Technical Research Analyst at Choice Equity Broking, noted that GIFT Nifty was trading around 24,140, up nearly 185 points, indicating that the price action indicates that the market is undergoing a short-term corrective phase, with recovery attempts likely to face hurdles unless key resistance levels are decisively crossed. For technical levels, the Nifty faces immediate resistance at 24,200–24,300, with stronger supply seen at 24,500–24,600, while support holds at 23,900–23,800. Bank Nifty, which was trading near 56,100, resistance is seen at 56,500–57,000, while support is placed at 55,700–55,600.
On Friday's session, foreign institutional investors extended their selling streak for a fourth consecutive session, offloading equities worth ₹8,827 crore, while domestic institutional investors provided partial support with net purchases of ₹4,700 crore. This institutional activity pattern reflects the mixed sentiment among different investor categories, with foreign investors showing continued selling pressure while domestic institutions maintained buying interest. India VIX closed at 19.71 on Friday, pointing to elevated uncertainty and the likelihood of sharp intraday swings, with analysts noting that despite near-term turbulence, India's domestic fundamentals remain intact, with rising private capital expenditure pointing to underlying economic resilience even as global macro risks from energy prices and geopolitics keep markets on edge.
