Stock Markets Turn Flat After Falling in Early Trade

• Sensex opened −264 pts, later rebounded +44 pts to 76,522; Nifty dipped then rose +17 pts to 24,049.

• Brent crude up 1.9% to $97.97/barrel on US Iran strikes; peace talks ongoing but no imminent end.

• FIIs net bought ₹821.75 crore Monday; winners: Infosys, SBI, ICICI; laggards: Sun Pharma, Kotak Bank, Titan.

Market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty were trading flat after falling in early trade on Tuesday amid mixed trend in Asian equities and a rise in crude oil prices.

The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 264.82 points to 76,224.14 in opening trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dipped 27.6 points to 24,004.10.

However, later both the benchmark indices rebounded and were trading marginally higher. The BSE benchmark traded 44.43 points up at 76,521.93, and the Nifty quoted 17.20 points higher at 24,048.85. From the 30-Sensex firms, Eternal, Infosys, State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Bharat Electronics and Maruti were among the major winners.

Sun Pharma, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Trent and Titan were among the laggards.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded 1.90% higher at $97.97 per barrel.

US President Donald Trump on Monday said negotiations with Iran to end the war were progressing "nicely", but officials pointed out that a final decision may take some time due to the complex communication networks Tehran deploys to consult with its supreme leader.

In Asian markets, South Korea's benchmark Kospi and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index traded higher, while Japan's Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai's SSE Composite index quoted lower.

US markets were closed on Monday for Memorial Day.

"Even though negotiations are continuing for an end to the West Asia crisis there are no indications of an imminent end to the conflict. The 'self defence' strikes by the US in Southern Iran has come as a dampener to the ongoing negotiations. But this is not viewed by the markets as the beginning of another round of military strikes. That's why Brent crude remains around $98 having fallen more than 20% from the peak," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹821.75 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.

On Monday, the Sensex jumped 1,073.61 points, or 1.42%, to settle at 76,488.96. The Nifty surged 312.40 points, or 1.32%, to end at 24,031.70.