Indian benchmark indices opened on a cautious but positive note on Wednesday, recovering part of the previous session's losses as technology stocks rebounded and lower crude oil prices improved sentiment. At around 9:40 am, the BSE Sensex was up 238.57 points, or 0.31%, at 76,439.25, while the NSE Nifty 50 advanced 46.20 points, or 0.19%, to 23,870.30. The recovery follows Tuesday's sharp selloff, when the Sensex plunged 893 points and the Nifty fell 279 points after a global technology rout triggered by a 10% crash in South Korea's Kospi index. Technology shares, which bore the brunt of Tuesday's decline, emerged among the top gainers in early trade.
Tech Mahindra rose 2.7%, while Infosys gained 1.5% and TCS added 0.7%, helping the Nifty IT index climb more than 1% as investors appeared to return to select technology names after Tuesday's panic selling. The rebound came after South Korea's Kospi recovered nearly 3% on Wednesday following the previous session's steep correction in semiconductor stocks. Among the top gainers on the Nifty were Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Tech Mahindra, ICICI Bank, Infosys and Adani Enterprises. On the downside, Bajaj Auto, Hindalco, Bharti Airtel, HCL Technologies and Grasim Industries traded lower. A key support for Indian equities came from crude oil prices, which extended their decline.
Brent crude futures fell about 1% and traded below $77 per barrel, hovering near four-month lows as more oil tankers stranded in the Gulf began moving through the Strait of Hormuz amid easing geopolitical tensions. Lower crude prices are particularly positive for India as they help reduce inflationary pressures, improve the current account balance and support the rupee. Sectorally, banking and financial stocks led gains with the Nifty Private Bank index rising 0.7%, while Nifty Bank, Financial Services, Pharma, Healthcare and Realty indices gained between 0.4% and 0.7%. Broader markets were relatively muted, with the Nifty Midcap 100 rising 0.1% and the Nifty Smallcap 100 slipping 0.1%.
On Wednesday, the Indian share market opened the day trading mixed in the pre-opening session, with the NIFTY 50 at 23,795.80, down by 0.12%, and the SENSEX at 76,229.76, up by 0.04%. This mixed performance reflects ongoing market volatility as investors navigate between recovering technology stocks and broader market concerns. The session opened with cautious sentiment, reflecting the market's cautious approach to the recovery from Tuesday's sharp decline.
Several companies are making significant announcements that will impact market focus. Embassy Developments has signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Uttar Pradesh for a proposed large-scale commercial development in Lucknow, involving an investment of around ₹1,500 crore. Meanwhile, Life Insurance Corporation of India announced that Sunil Agrawal has resigned as Chief Financial Officer effective July 14. Additionally, NLC India Renewables has signed a Joint Venture Agreement with OREDA for establishing 1,000 MW of green energy projects in Odisha. Notably, HCL Technologies has been selected by Neste for a long-term AI-led efficiency transformation partnership, with Neste reporting EUR 19.0 billion revenue in 2025 and HCLTech recording $14.7 billion consolidated revenues for the 12 months ending March 2026.
Asian markets traded mixed after Tuesday's global selloff in semiconductor and technology shares. Japan's Nikkei fell 0.4%, China's Shanghai Composite declined 0.25%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped marginally. However, South Korea's Kospi rebounded 3% after suffering its steepest decline in months a day earlier. Overnight, US markets closed lower, with the Nasdaq Composite falling 2.2% as investors continued to reassess valuations in artificial intelligence and semiconductor stocks amid concerns over future interest rates. VK Vijayakumar from Geojit Investments noted that India remained relatively resilient compared with other major markets, with the sharp correction in Brent crude below $77, stability in the rupee and tapering foreign institutional investor selling as positive factors for Indian equities.
Despite the positive market recovery, VK Vijayakumar identified the weak southwest monsoon as the emerging risk for the domestic market. The monsoon is deficient by 43% so far, with concerns that this might impact India's growth and corporate profits marginally. Sectors dependent on rural demand, including FMCG and entry-level two-wheelers, could face pressure if rainfall remains weak, while pharmaceutical companies may prove relatively resilient due to the inelastic nature of demand. For now, investors remain focused on balancing supportive domestic macroeconomic trends against lingering global volatility and weather-related risks.
