Market Wrap: Sensex down 20 pts, Nifty below 26,000 as year-end caution persists

Indian stocks ended little changed on Tuesday, with the Sensex and Nifty extending their losing run as thin year-end trading and lingering concerns over foreign fund outflows kept investors cautious and volumes subdued.

The BSE Sensex edged down 20 points, or 0.02%, to close at 84,675.08, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped 3 points, or 0.01%, to finish at 25,938.85, just below the 26,000 mark.

On the 30-stock Sensex, Eternal, Infosys, Asian Paints, UltraTech Cement and Bajaj Finance led the losses, falling between 1% and 2%.


Eternal slid 2% after reports that the chief financial officer of its quick-commerce unit, Blinkit, had resigned.

Broader markets also weakened, with mid-cap stocks down 0.2% and small-caps shedding 0.3%.

The Sensex and Nifty are down about 1% over the past five sessions, pressured by steady foreign selling amid thin trading volumes.

Expert views

The domestic market remained volatile and ended the monthly expiry day flat, despite supportive global cues and selective value buying, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, adding that a stronger rupee provided some respite, yet overall sentiment stayed cautious amid persistent FII outflows.

"Sector-wise, while auto stocks gained on robust IIP data, metal stocks gained due to higher metal prices enabling better realisations. Similarly, PSU banks advanced on improved asset quality. Looking ahead, the market is anticipated to stay sideways, awaiting more pronounced outcomes from US-India trade talks and the Q3 results calendar," said Nair.

Global Markets

Asian equities were steady on Tuesday as investors locked in strong year-end gains, while gold and silver stabilized after a sharp pullback from record highs cooled the metals rally.

Thin trading in a holiday-shortened week amplified volatility overnight. Silver slid 8.7% after hitting a record near $84 an ounce, its biggest one-day drop since August 2020, dragging gold and copper lower before rebounding.

Silver rose 2.5% on Tuesday to $74.1 an ounce and remained on track for a 156% annual gain. Gold added 0.7% to $4,361 an ounce after falling 4.4% in the previous session.

MSCI’s Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index edged up 0.1%, heading for a 26.7% annual gain, its best since 2017. Japan’s Nikkei slipped 0.1% but was still up about 26% for the year.

China’s blue-chip stocks rose 0.2%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4%, and U.S. and European stock futures were largely steady in Asian trade.

Crude impact

Oil prices were little changed on Tuesday as investors reassessed fading expectations of a Russia-Ukraine peace agreement and weighed rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, particularly around Yemen.

Brent crude futures for February delivery, set to expire later in the day, rose 15 cents to $62.09 a barrel by 0918 GMT, while the more actively traded March contract added 12 cents to $61.61.

Rupee vs Dollar

The Indian rupee strengthened on Tuesday, rising 14 paise to a provisional close of 89.84 against the U.S. dollar, supported by dollar sales from the Reserve Bank of India.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, edged up 0.06% to 97.99.

(with inputs from agencies)