Markets Turn Volatile: Sensex Gives Up Gains, Nifty Trades Lower After Positive Open

Indian benchmark indices surrendered early gains on Tuesday morning after opening in positive territory, with investors booking profits ahead of the June-quarter earnings season despite stable global macroeconomic cues.

The BSE Sensex initially rose more than 200 points to touch 77,005, while the NSE Nifty 50 climbed around 86 points to reclaim the 24,000 mark in early trade.

However, the rally proved short-lived. By around 9:45 a.m., the Sensex had slipped 214 points into the red to trade at 76,514, while the Nifty fell 76 points, or 0.33%, to 23,867.

Broader markets also pared early gains, although they remained relatively resilient. The Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices were up around 0.3%.

Maruti Outperforms, IT Stocks Weigh

Maruti Suzuki emerged as the top gainer on the Sensex, rising nearly 3%. Sun Pharma and Adani Ports also gained more than 1%.

On the other hand, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank traded with modest losses, weighing on benchmark indices.

Sectorally, the Nifty Oil & Gas index gained 0.45%, while the Nifty PSU Bank index rose 0.40%. The Nifty Metal index, however, declined nearly 0.3%.

Market breadth remained positive, with around 1,525 stocks advancing against 741 declines on the NSE, while India VIX eased more than 1% to 13.47, indicating relatively subdued volatility despite the reversal in headline indices.

The Indian rupee opened marginally weaker at 94.59 against the US dollar, compared with Monday's close of 94.54.

The domestic currency continues to remain broadly stable as crude oil prices and US bond yields have largely consolidated in recent sessions.

Quarterly Earnings To Drive Markets

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said the market currently lacks any major near-term trigger as Brent crude, US bond yields and the rupee have all stabilised.

He believes investor attention will gradually shift towards June-quarter earnings, with banking and financial services expected to remain among the strongest performers due to healthy credit growth and stable net interest margins.

According to Vijayakumar, healthcare is another sector likely to deliver resilient earnings and could benefit as a defensive play amid concerns over a weak monsoon. He also expects power and capital goods companies to report healthy performance backed by strong order books.

For the IT sector, he said management commentary would be more important than quarterly numbers, as sentiment towards the sector remains weak. In automobiles, he expects stock-specific movements rather than a broad sectoral trend.

Commodities In Focus

According to Devenya Gaglani, Senior Research Analyst - Commodities at Axis Direct, gold prices fell 1.7% on Monday to around $4,020 per ounce as uncertainty surrounding the upcoming US-Iran peace talks strengthened expectations that the US Federal Reserve could maintain a tighter monetary policy. Gold is now on track for its fourth consecutive monthly decline, having lost more than 10% so far this month.

Silver also remained under pressure, with Comex silver falling more than 1% below the $58 level amid a stronger US dollar and lingering trade-related uncertainty.

Meanwhile, WTI crude oil rebounded above $70 per barrel after a decline in shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz partially offset broader optimism over improving geopolitical conditions. Investors are closely watching fresh US-Iran peace talks scheduled to take place in Doha, Qatar, later on Tuesday.