Mumbai, January 27: Indian stock markets on Tuesday witnessed volatility but managed to close in positive territory, taking a breather after Monday's bloodbath.
At the close of the trading session today, the Sensex was up 535.24 points or 0.71 per cent at 75,901.41, and the Nifty was up 128.1 points or 0.56 per cent at 22,957.25.
The shares of 1,116 companies advanced in the market while the 2,429 shares declined, and 84 shares remained unchanged.
Despite weak global cues, the benchmark displayed resilience, inching higher for most of the session. However, a sharp dip in the final half-hour erased a significant portion of the gains. Ultimately, the Nifty index settled at 22,957.25, up 0.56 per cent.
On the sectoral front, rate-sensitive sectors like realty, banking, and auto outperformed, driven by the RBI's announcement of measures to enhance liquidity. Conversely, pharma and energy sectors faced selling pressure.
Broader markets continued to underperform, with the midcap index losing nearly half a per cent and the small-cap index declining by about two per cent.
"Markets have repeatedly struggled to sustain recovery attempts, and this session was no exception. Ongoing caution ahead of the Union Budget, a mixed earnings season, and weak global cues are further unsettling participants," said Ajit Mishra - SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd.
Observing the trading session, V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services said the he Indian market appears to be oversold and is set for a rebound.
"The RBI's announcement of measures to boost the liquidity in the banking system by around Rs 1.5 trillion is positive for the market. This raises the prospects of a rate cut by the MPC in the February policy meeting. Banks are likely to benefit."
He added that the market is now trading at fair valuations which are in line with long-term (10-year) averages after facing the recent corrections.
"Technically, after a promising opening, the market bounced back sharply; however, it once again witnessed profit booking at higher levels. On daily charts, it has formed a long-legged Doji candlestick formation, which suggests indecisiveness between the bulls and the bears," said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research, Kotak Securities said.
The optimism today shown by the benchmarks was mostly due to the banking industry movement after the RBI announced open market interventions to address liquidity concerns, according to Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
"Large-cap stocks outperformed, as their valuations have now reached fair levels and are further supported by expectations that the market correction is nearing its bottom. In contrast, mid- and small-cap stocks continued to decline, as they remain overvalued. However, volatility is expected to remain elevated in the near-term in anticipation of the upcoming Union Budget, the FOMC meeting, and the F&O expiry, " he added.
