Sensex, Nifty Extend Winning Run As IT Stocks Offset Weak Asian Cues

Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Tuesday, extending their winning streak to a fifth consecutive session, as easing crude oil prices and improving foreign institutional investor (FII) sentiment helped domestic markets shrug off weak global cues.

At around 9:15 am, the BSE Sensex rose 105.87 points, or 0.14%, to 78,390.94, while the NSE Nifty 50 gained 40.15 points, or 0.16%, to trade at 24,470.50.

Market breadth was marginally positive, with 1,246 stocks advancing, 1,120 declining and 172 remaining unchanged.

Among the Nifty 50 constituents, Shriram Finance, Eternal, Infosys, SBI Life Insurance and Max Healthcare were the top gainers. Trent, JSW Steel, InterGlobe Aviation, Bharat Electronics and Asian Paints were among the biggest losers.

IT Stocks Buck Global Trend

The Nifty IT index emerged as the top-performing sector, gaining 1.64% in early trade despite weakness in global technology stocks.

The broader market traded with a slight negative bias, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 edging down 0.09% and 0.02%, respectively.

The positive opening came a day after the combined market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies hit a record high of ₹482.31 lakh crore, driven by sustained gains in Indian equities, easing geopolitical tensions, softer crude oil prices and renewed FII buying.

Although the combined market capitalisation remains around 12% below its all-time high in dollar terms, it has risen 17% since the beginning of April.

Asian Markets Under Pressure

Asian equities traded sharply lower after renewed selling pressure in technology stocks following Samsung Electronics' quarterly earnings.

Despite reporting strong quarterly operating income, Samsung shares fell nearly 10% as investors booked profits amid concerns that the company's strong performance had already been priced in.

The weakness spread across the region, with South Korea's Kospi falling about 6.5%, Japan's Nikkei declining 1.33%, China's Shanghai Composite losing 0.91% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipping 0.33%.

Lower Crude, FII Buying Support Domestic Outlook

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said the Indian market is showing clear signs of an uptrend as two major headwinds—higher crude oil prices and sustained FII selling—have reversed.

He said crude oil has returned to pre-conflict levels, while foreign investors have shifted from persistent selling to net buying. Although the pace of buying remains modest, the reversal marks a significant improvement that is likely to continue, supported by India's underlying fundamentals.

According to Vijayakumar, June auto retail sales growth of 22% indicates that economic momentum remains healthy. Lower crude prices are expected to keep inflation under control, enabling the Reserve Bank of India to maintain a supportive interest-rate environment.

He expects automobiles and financials, particularly banking stocks, to lead the next phase of the market rally, supported by strong credit growth of more than 17%. Oil and gas as well as telecom companies are also likely to contribute to gains, while continued retail participation should provide support to the broader market.