Stock Market Updates: Sensex Falls Over 300 Points, Nifty Below 26,250; HDFC Bank Down 2%

Sensex Today: Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty50 opened in the red on Tuesday amid mixed global cues, weighed down by weakness in oil and gas stocks.

The Nifty50 began trade at 26,189.70, down 60.6 points from the previous close, while the Sensex opened 108.48 points lower at 85,331.14.

On the BSE, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Tech Mahindra emerged as the top gainers, whereas Trent, Reliance Industries and Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles were among the top losers.

On the NSE, HDFC Life, Hindalco and Apollo Hospitals featured among the leading gainers, while Trent, Reliance Industries and Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles dragged the index lower.

Broader markets were mixed in early trade, with the Nifty Smallcap index up 0.17 percent, while

the Nifty Midcap was largely flat.

Sectorally, Nifty Oil and Gas was the worst performer, declining 1.36 percent, while the Nifty Metal index gained 0.95 percent.

Global Cues

Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Tuesday after a historic rally in global equities, with investors assessing the implications of the US military strike on Venezuela and the subsequent capture of its ousted leader, Nicolás Maduro. Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 1.12 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi slipped 0.85 percent and Australia’s ASX/S&P 200 fell 0.42 percent. US equity futures were largely steady during early Asian trading hours.

Overnight on Wall Street, major US indices ended higher, shrugging off concerns over escalating geopolitical tensions following the US action. The S&P 500 rose 0.64 percent and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.69 percent, supported by higher crude oil prices and investor optimism that the intervention would not trigger a broader global conflict.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which touched a fresh all-time high during the session, eventually closed with a strong gain of 1.23 percent.