Stock Market: Sensex Rises 100 Points, Nifty Above 19,750. NTPC Up 2%, Power Grid Down 4%; Realty Drags

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, NTPC, TechM, Tata Motors, M&M, HCL, Infosys were among the early gainers

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Tuesday were trading higher after paring early losses. The domestic indices started trade flat despite firm global sentiment. At 9.55 am, the BSE Sensex was up 115 points to 66,643. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 was trading at 19,784, up 30 points.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, NTPC, TechM, Tata Motors, M&M, HCL, Infosys were among the early gainers. On the downside, PowerGrid, Bajaj Finserv, Asian Paints, Reliance, IndusInd Bank, L&T emerged losers. Among individual stocks, shares of Power Grid fell 3 per cent after consolidated net profit dropped 5 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 3,597 crore in Q1FY24.

In the broader markets, Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices gained up to 0.6 per cent.

Sectorwise, realty went down 1 per cent, while buying is seen in the auto, IT, and metals. 

In the previous session on Monday, the S&P BSE Sensex gained 367 points to end at 66,528. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 reclaimed the 19,750-mark to end at 19,754 levels, up 108 points.

"The resilience of the mother market US, where the rally is spreading to the broader market, is supporting global markets," said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, and Shanghai were quoting with gains while Hong Kong traded lower. The US markets ended in the green on Monday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude quoted 0.67 per cent higher at $85.56 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 701.17 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, the rupee depreciated 3 paise to 82.32 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday as the strength of the American currency in the overseas markets and firm crude oil prices weighed on investor sentiments. However, positive domestic equities restricted the depreciating bias, traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.32, registering a decline of 3 paise over its last close. On Monday, the rupee had settled at 82.29 against the dollar.

Forex traders said the rupee is expected to trade with a negative bias on the strong dollar and some selling by FIIs over the past couple of sessions. However, positive domestic markets cushioned the downside, they said.