Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rose on Monday after three days of decline amid value-buying in blue-chip stocks like HDFC Bank and State Bank of India. The rupee fell 13 paise to 92.43 against the US dollar in early trade. In early trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex fell 179.31 points to 74,384.61. At the same time, the 50-share NSE Nifty fell 53.1 points to 23,098. However, later both the benchmark indices gained momentum. The BSE benchmark index was trading 342.02 points higher at 74,899.76 and the Nifty index was trading 88.55 points higher at 23,240.95.

Condition of Sensex companies

Among the 30 Sensex companies, UltraTech Cement, Tata Steel, InterGlobe Aviation, State Bank of India, HDFC Bank and ITC were among the biggest gainers. Bharat Electronics, Mahindra & Mahindra, Infosys, Trent and Tata Consultancy Services were among the major laggards.

What is the opinion of experts?

India is moving forward under complex diplomatic and economic pressures. Banking and market expert Ajay Bagga said that on one hand India has balanced its interests by maintaining dialogue with both the US administration and Tehran, while on the other hand global macroeconomic pressures are weighing heavily on the domestic market. He said that the safe passage of three Indian tankers, including LPG carriers, amid a situation similar to the closure of the strait for some countries, reflects India’s special diplomatic position. According to Ajay Bagga, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are continuously withdrawing money from the Indian market. So far in March, FPIs have sold more than Rs 54,000 crore. He said that FPIs are not just selling shares, but are also betting on the possibility of further decline in the market by taking huge net short positions in index futures. In such a situation, the level around 23,240 remains important for the Indian stock markets and it is difficult to see a strong buying trend in the market before the comments of the central banks.

Mixed situation in Asian markets

In Asian markets, South Korea’s benchmark Kospi, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai’s SSE Composite index were trading lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was trading higher. The US market closed with a decline on Friday.

The price of Brent crude reached around $ 104 per barrel.

Meanwhile, global commodity prices also remained bullish. The price of Brent crude has increased to around $ 104 per barrel, which is above last week’s closing level. In the early trading of precious metals on Monday, there was a slight softening in the prices of gold, but 24 carat gold still remained at a high level of Rs 1,58,400 per 10 grams. On the other hand, a sharp decline of 3.24 percent was recorded in the prices of silver and it was Rs 2,59,279 per 10 grams. It came down to kg. FPI selling continues in the month of March. So far, foreign investors have been net sellers on every trading day of March. Till March 13, the total net selling by FPIs through exchanges has been recorded at Rs 54,455 crore.