Stock Market Today: Sensex, Nifty Log Worst Losing Streak In Five Months As Axis, ICICI Drag

Overseas investors stayed sellers on Thursday for the fourth consecutive day.

Foreign portfolio investors sold stocks worth Rs 4,260.33 crore, according to provisional data from the National Stock Exchange and domestic institutional investors remained net buyers for the seventh day and mopped up equities worth Rs 2,285.52 crore, the NSE data showed.

Foreign institutions have been net buyers of Rs 9,802 crore worth of Indian equities so far in 2024, according to data from the National Securities Depository Ltd., updated till the previous trading day.

• The local currency closed at a new low of Rs 83.543 against the greenback

Source: Bloomberg

India's benchmark indices erased intraday gains to extend its losing streak to fourth session as Axis Bank Ltd. ICICI Bank Ltd., and HDFC Bank Ltd. dragged.

With today's sharp decline, the benchmarks recorded worst losing streak since Oct 26, 2023.

The NSE Nifty 50 settled 152.05 points or 0.69% lower at 21,995.85, and the S&P BSE Sensex ended 454.69 points or 0.62% down at 72,488.99.

The benchmark NSE Nifty 50 index slipped below psychologically-crucial level of 22,000 for the first time since March 26.

Intraday, Nifty rose 0.81% to 22,326.50, and Sensex rose 0.73% to 73,473.05.

Global markets volatility, geo-political tensions in the gulf region and ahead of domestic quarterly results kept the intra-day volatility higher in the markets, Vikas Jain, senior research analyst at Reliance Securities.

"Extreme volatility swings were seen on the weekly expiry day with the morning trade dominated by bulls followed by a steep decline in the mid-session. Follow-up selling dragged the Index further lower to trade below the psychological support of 22,000. With a loss of 152.05 points, Nifty50 ended the day at 21,995.85," said Aditya Gaggar, director, Progressive Shares.

With a bearish engulfing candlestick pattern, the Index has broken its 50-day simple moving average and long trendline support but currently, it is placed at the lower end of the rising channel. The activity of the upcoming day will decide the continuation or reversal of the trend, Gaggar added.

HDFC Bank Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd., Axis Bank Ltd., ITC Ltd., and Titan Co. Ltd. dragged on the benchmark indices.

Bharti Airtel ltd., Powergrid Corp of India Ltd., Bajaj Auto Ltd., and Hindalco Industries Ltd. added to the benchmark indices.

On NSE, 11 sectors out of 12 ended lower, and one settled higher. The NSE Nifty Oil and Gas sector declined the most among peers, while the NSE Nifty Media index rose the most.

Broader markets ended on a mixed note. The S&P BSE Midcap settled 0.39% lower, and the S&P BSE Smallcap index settled 0.06% higher.

On BSE, 10 sectors declined, and 10 advanced out of 20. The S&P BSE Consumer Durables sector declined the most, and the S&P BSE Telecommunication rose the most among sectoral indices.

Market breadth was split evenly between buyers and sellers. Around 1904 stocks advanced, 1894 stocks declined, and 131 stocks remained unchanged on BSE.

The FPO has been subscribed 0.16 times or 16% as of 3:00 p.m. on Thursday.

• Institutional investors: 0.40 times or 40%.

• Non-institutional investors: 0.12 times or 12%.

• Retail investors: 0.05 times or 5%.

• LTIMindtree Ltd signed a pact with Vodafone Idea Ltd. to deliver IoT solutions.

Source: Exchange filing

• Net premium income rose 5.5% to Rs 20,533 crore from Rs 19,469 crore

• Net profit was at Rs 412 crore compared to Bloomberg's estimate of Rs 384 crore (Cons).

• Net profit rose 15% to Rs 412 crore from Rs 359 crore .

• Total income rose 30% to Rs 27,945 crore from Rs 21,470 crore.

• FY24 new business margin is at 26.3%

• Deepak S Parekh steps down as Chairman and Non-Executive Director effective today.

• Keki Mistry named as new Chairman effective immediately.

Source: Exchange filing

• Muthoot Finance Ltd.'s board approved update of existing GMTN Programme aggregating to $2 billion.

• Alert: GMTN stands for Global Medium Term Note.

Source: Exchange filing

Indian benchmark stock indices were trading higher through midday on Thursday as Bharti Airtel Ltd., Infosys Ltd., and Larsen & Toubro Ltd. led gains. Intraday, Nifty rose 0.81% to 22,326.50, and Sensex rose 0.73% to 73,473.05.

As of 12:44 p.m., the NSE Nifty 50 was 162.85 points, or 0.74% higher at 22,310.75, and S&P BSE Sensex was up 477.64 points, or 0.65% at 73,421.32.

"Meanwhile, the dollar paused and bond markets stabilised as investors took a step back to assess the interest rate outlook," said Avdhut Bagkar, technical and derivatives analyst at StoxBox. The index is anticipated to attract bullish strength, he said.

Shares of Bharti Airtel Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd., and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. were positively contributing to changes in the Nifty.

While, Axis Bank Ltd., Apollo Hospitals Enterprises Ltd., ITC Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd. and Nestle India Ltd. weighed the index.

On NSE, 11 out of 12 sectors advanced, with NSE Nifty Metal emerging as top performer. The NSE Nifty FMCG was the top loser as sharp decline in shares of Nestle India Ltd. weighed the index.

Broader markets outperformed benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Midcap index rose 0.96%, and the S&P BSE Smallcap was 1.28% higher.

On BSE, all 20 sectors advanced with the S&P BSE Telecommunication rising the most among peers. The S&P BSE FMCG was the top loser.

Market breadth was skewed in the favour of buyers. Around 2,579 stocks rose, 1,102 stocks declined, and 126 stocks remained unchanged on BSE.

• Mastek Ltd. is named as a supplier of the U.K. Defence Ministry's £1.2 billion digital and IT professional services framework.

Source: Exchange filing

• Veranda Learning Solutions Ltd. is in business transfer agreement with Logic Management Training.

• The unit is to acquire business operations of Logic Management Training.

Source: Exchange filing

• Capacite Infraprojects Ltd. has received an order worth Rs 256 crore from Macrotech Developers

• The company also received an order worth Rs 293 crore from Raymond Realty.

Source: Exchange filing

Nestle India Ltd.'s stock tumbled to over two-month low Thursday after a Swiss Investigative Organisation said it has been adding excess sugar in baby food for developing countries unlike in the U.S., Europe.

Shares of Nestle India declined as much as 5.32% to Rs 2,410.60 apiece, the lowest level since Feb 8. It was trading 4.95% lower at Rs 2,420.05 apiece, as of 11:11 a.m. This compares to a 0.61% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 Index.

It has risen 18.82% in 12 months, and on year to basis, it has declined 7.41%. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 2.7 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 38.19.

Out of 38 analysts tracking the company, 16 maintain a 'buy' rating, 14 recommend a 'hold,' and  eight suggest 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target implies an upside of 6.6%.

• Bharti Airtel Ltd. signed a pact with Dialog and Axiata Group to merge Sri Lanka operations.

• Dialog will acquire 100% of the issued shares in Airtel Sri Lanka.

• Dialog will issue shares worth 10.36% stake to Bharti Airtel via share swap.

• Sri Lanka's Telecom Regulatory Authority has already approved the proposed merger.

Source: Exchange filing

• Jyoti Structures Ltd. has commissioned Khavda to Bhuj project line with contract value of Rs 382.1 crore.

Source: Exchange filing

• Ramkrishna Forgings Ltd. has received an approval to supply power train components in the U.S.

Source: Exchange filing

• Sterling Tools Ltd. has signed a MoU with South Korea's Yongin Electronics for EV components facility.

• Partnership expected to generate Rs 250 crore in business over next 5 years.

• Alert: Yongin Electronics is a components supplier for the Hyundai Kia Motor Group

Source: Exchange filing

Shares of Hathway Cable & Datacom Ltd rose over one-month high as it made profit in January-March period after it operational profit rose.

The software producer posted a net profit of Rs 34.6 crore in quarter four, compared to Rs 14.6 crore loss, it said in an exchange filing.

Shares of Hathway Cable & Datacom Ltd. rose 8.04% to Rs 22.85, the highest level since March 4. It pared gains to trade 4.73% higher at 22.15 as of 10:38 a.m., as compared to 0.24% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

On year-to-date basis, the scrip gained 4.96%, while in 12 months it rose 85.73%. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 1.53 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 56.17.

• Droneacharya Aerial Innovations is in pact with CBAI Technologies Pvt. Ltd. for 200 type certified drones over a span of three years.

Source: Exchange filing

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's inspection at the company's manufacturing facility in Goa closes with five observations.

Source: Exchange filing

Shares of Just Dial Ltd. surged 13.06% to Rs 1,007.45, the highest level since Oct 11, 2021. It was trading 12.71% higher at 1,004.35 as of 09:59 a.m., as compared to 0.27% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The scrip gained 50.81% in 12 months, and year-to-date basis, it rose 24.48%. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 44 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 72.63.

Out of 10 analysts tracking the company, seven maintain a 'buy' rating, one recommend a 'hold,' and two suggest 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target implies an upside of 1.1%.

Shares of Angel One Ltd. jumped over 8% on NSE Thursday on reporting a rise in its net profit for January - March period.

The stock-broking firm reported that its net profit grew 27% on an annualised basis to Rs 340 crore in quarter four, from Rs 267 crore in the corresponding period of previous financial year.

The scrip rose as much as 8.69% to Rs 3,100 apiece, the highest level since April 4. It pared gains to trade 3.49% higher at Rs 2,951 apiece, as of 09:38 a.m. This compares to a 0.38% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 Index.

It has risen 127.50% in 12 months, while on year to date bases, the scrip fell 15.56%. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 11 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 53.81.

Out of nine analysts tracking the company, six maintain a 'buy' rating, one recommend a 'hold,' and two suggest 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target implies an upside of 23.7%.

Shares of Vodafone Idea Ltd. rose over 4% on Thursday after the cash-strapped telecom firm mopped up close to Rs 5,400 crore from anchor investors ahead of its follow-on public offer. The FPO opens for retail investors on Thursday and will close on April 22.

Shares of the company rose as much as 4.25% to Rs 13.50 apiece. It was trading 3.47% higher at Rs 13.40 apiece as of 09:24 a.m. This compares to a 0.49% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 Index.

The stock has risen 121.49% in 12 months. The relative strength index was at 49.51

Out of 17 analysts tracking the company, one maintains a 'buy' rating, three recommend a 'hold', and 13 suggest a 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target implies a downside of 45.3%.

Snapping a three-day losing streak, Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Thursday, led by gains in  Reliance Industries Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd., and HDFC Bank Ltd.

As of 09:21 a.m., the NSE Nifty 50 was trading 108.05 points or 0.49% higher at 22,255.95, and the S&P BSE Sensex was trading 277.11 points or 0.38% higher at 73,220.79.

Technically, Nifty and Sensex has fallen below the 50-day Simple Moving Average and could drop to 22,000 or 21,900, said Shrikant Chouhan, head equity research, Kotak Securities. It is advisable to reduce long positions or create short positions between 22,200 and 22,250. For the NSE Nifty Bank index, crossing 47,700-47,800 could push the indices to 48,000, while 47,100-47,000 is expected to act as an immediate support zone.

Reliance Industries Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd., HDFC Bank Ltd., Power Grid Corp of India Ltd., and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. added to the benchmark index.

HCL Technologies Ltd., Axis Bank Ltd., Nestle India Ltd., Infosys Ltd., and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. limited gains in the index.

All 12 sectors opened higher on NSE. The NSE Nifty Oil & Gas sector rose over 1% to become the top performer, while the NSE Nifty FMCG index emerged as the top loser.

Broader markets outperformed benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Midcap index was trading 0.71%, and the S&P BSE Smallcap index was 0.84% up.

On BSE, 19 sectors advanced out of 20, and one declined. The S&P BSE Oil and Gas index rose nearly 2% to become the best performing sector, while the S&P BSE Pharma emerged as the top loser.

Market breadth was skewed in favour of buyers. Around 2,257 stocks advanced, 626 stocks declined, and 101 remained unchanged on BSE.

• Endurance Technologies Ltd. has approved capacity addition for aluminium die casting and machining parts at a cost of Rs 63.1 crore.

Source: Exchange filing

The NSE Nifty 50 was trading 64.45 points or 0.29% higher at 22,212.35, and the S&P BSE Sensex was trading 456.10 points or 0.62% lower at 72,943.68.

• The yield on the 10-year bond opened 2 bps lower at 7.16%.

• It closed at 7.18% on Tuesday.

Source: Bloomberg

• The local currency strengthened by 3 paise to 83.51 against the U.S. Dollar.

• It closed at 83.54 a dollar on Tuesday.

Source: Bloomberg

• Goldman Sachs initiated a 'Buy' on Power Grid Corp of India, with a target price of Rs 355, which implied 29% upside.

• Largest beneficiary of transition linked grid capex, not priced in stock price, the brokerage said.

• Goldman Sachs expects it to fund 30% of India's grid capex by FY23E given low debt and strong FCF.

• Cost of equity reduction led by beta compression is expected to drive re-rating.

• Goldman Sachs initiated a 'Buy' on Hitachi Energy India, with a target price of Rs 8,250, which implied a 9% upside.

• The brokerage prefers its positioning as pure upstream manufacturing beneficiary.

• Hitachi Energy India Ltd. is expected to benefit from global transmission equipment shortage tailwinds.

• Goldman Sachs initiated cover with a Sell rating on Schneider Electric Infra.

• The brokerage set the target price of Rs 470, which implied 41% downside.

• Risk-reward unfavourable post 375% stock rally over last 12 months.

• The brokerage expects 18% core earnings CAGR over FY23-40E.

• The brokage maintained a 'Buy' rating with a Target unchanged to Rs 1,990, which implies an upside of 21%.

• Strong premium growth, market share gains, the brokerage said.

• HSBC Global Research has noted sharp improvement in combined ratios.

• ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company is optimistic on growth on pricing discipline.

• The company is valued at P/E of 35x FY26e EPS.

• Jefferies maintained a 'Buy' rating with a target price Rs 1,950, which implied an upside of 18%.

• Growth in net premiums reflects better underwriting, the brokerage said.

• Motor and fire see higher improvement in profitability.

• Health and commercial lines are to lead growth.

• Partnership with Policybazaar is positive.

• Nomura downgraded ABB India Ltd. to 'Neutral' from 'Buy' rating.

• The brokerage set price target of Rs 6,660, up from Rs 5,740), implying 0.2% upside.

• Recent stock rally of 54% in past six months warrants rating downgrade.

• Nomura raised CY25 earnings by 5% on margins touching 15% by CY26.

• Structural changes over last three years is leading to 14-15% margin trajectory.

• Premium valuation is to sustain driven by improved margins visibility.

• Morgan Stanley maintained 'Overweight' on Oil and Natural Gas Corp of India at Rs 304 target, which implied 7% upside.

• ONGC's outperformance is likely to continue with improved capital allocation.

• Stable regulations is expected to support 18-20% ROE.

• Slow ramp-up in domestic production by end 2024 flagged with upside from improving earnings.

• Morgan Stanley believed ONGC provides stable cashflow

• U.S. Dollar Index at 105.93

• U.S. 10-year bond yield at 4.59%

• Brent crude up 0.15% at $87.42 per barrel

• Nymex crude up 0.08% at $82.76 per barrel 

• Bitcoin was up 1.05% at $61,496.30

• The FDA inspection at the Piramal Pharma Ltd.'s Riverview manufacturing facility in the US closes with no observations.

Source: Exchange filing

• SEPC Ltd. has fixed size of rights issue at up to Rs 200 crore.

Source: Exchange filing

• Jubilant Pharmova's US subsidiary, Jubilant Cadista, is to stop manufacturing operations of its solid dosage formulation facility due to pricing pressure.

• Jubilant Cadista is to continue sales and marketing operations for US market.

Source: Exchange filing

• Max Financial Services Ltd. has approved allotment of 14.25 crore Max Life shares to Axis Bank for Rs 1,612 crore.

Source: Exchange filing

The Indian currency weakened by 9 paise to close at 83.54 against the U.S. Dollar.

• Nifty April futures down by 0.65% to 22,200.75 at a premium of 52.85 points.

• Nifty April futures open interest down by 5.06%.

• Nifty Bank April futures down by 0.29% to 47,660.95 at a premium of 176.15 points.

• Nifty Bank April futures open interest down by 1.09%.

• Nifty Options April 18 Expiry: Maximum call open interest at 22,500 and maximum put open interest at 22,000.

• Bank Nifty Options April 16 Expiry: Maximum call open interest at 47,500 and Maximum Put open interest at 47,400.

• Securities in ban period: Balrampur Chini Mills, Bandhan Bank, GNFC, Hindustan Copper, Idea, Metropolis, National Aluminium, Piramal Enterprises, SAIL, and Zee Entertainment Enterprises.

• Moved into short-term ASM framework: Ashiana Housing, Exide Industries.

• Moved out of short-term ASM framework: Genesys International Corp., GOCL Corp.

• Price Band change from 10% to 5%: Puravankara.

• Ex/record AGM: Vesuvius India.

• Navin Fluorine International: To meet analysts and investors on April 18.

• Coffee Day Enterprises: Tikri Investments bought 40 lakh shares (1.89%) at Rs 70.94 apiece.

• One 97 Communications: Paytm has refuted reports on the deferral of the licence application of Paytm Payment Services. The company has not received any communication suggesting a deferral or penalties with regard to Paytm Payment Services licence application.

• Vodafone Idea: The company successfully closed the anchor book allocation of 490 crore equity shares at Rs 11 per share for its upcoming public offer. Anchor investors have bought 491 crore shares at Rs 11 each. GQG has invested Rs 1,348 crore, Fidelity Rs 774 crore, and Redwheel Funds has put in Rs 281 crore.

• Infosys: The company announced a successful collaboration with Proximus, Belgium’s leading digital services and communications solutions provider to standardise its existing processes on the ServiceNow platform and transform its customer service management operations.

• Zee Entertainment Enterprises: The company announced its decision to withdraw the merger implementation application filed before the National Company Law Tribunal. This will enable the company to continue to aggressively pursue all its claims against Sony in the ongoing arbitration proceedings at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and in other forums. NSE has excluded the company from the derivatives segment.

• Ambuja Cements: The Adani family infused an additional Rs 8,339 crore, taking total infusion to Rs 20,000 crore under the warrants program; increasing stake to 70.3% from 63.2%.

• Power Grid: The company has approved raising funds up to Rs 12,000 crore via bonds in FY25. It was also declared a successful bidder for the inter-state transmission system.

• IIFL Finance: The company approved a right issue of an amount not exceeding Rs 1,500 crore at an offer price of Rs 300 per share. Rights issue to open on April 30, close on May 14.

• Adani Enterprises: The company’s step-down unit incorporated a Joint Venture King Power Ospree in Singapore.

• Sunteck Realty: The company reported a 20% annual growth in its sale bookings to Rs 1,915 crore in the FY24 on strong housing demand. The collections stood at Rs 296 crore, down 10% YoY/32% QoQ in Q4 FY24. The company has seven large projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region with a gross development value of approximately Rs 30,000 crore.

• PC Jeweller: The company is to raise Rs 1,500 crore through rights issue, while Rs 500 crore will be raised through fully convertible warrants.

• Kirloskar Ferrous Industries: The has restarted operations of the Hiriyur mini blast furnace.

• Brigade Enterprises: The company achieved the highest ever pre-sales of Rs 6,013 crore in FY24 and Rs 2,243 crore in Q4 and collections stood at Rs 5,915 crore up 9% YoY.

• Biocon: The drugmaker signed an exclusive licencing and supply agreement for generic Ozempic (Semaglutide) commercialization in Brazil with Biomm S.A.

• Happiest Minds Technologies: The company announced the new GenAI chatbot - 'hAPPI' developed for a unit for Happiest Health. The chatbot represents a significant advancement in providing personalised and informative interactions for users in the healthcare domain.

• Shilpa Medicare: The company’s Telangana unit was inspected by AGES, Austria from Jan 22 to Jan 26 and received GMP Certification from Ages, Austria.

• Andhra Paper: The company's manufacturing operations are temporarily shut at the Kadiyam unit due non-availability of pulp from the manufacturing unit at Rajahmundry where a strike has been ongoing since April 2.

• Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences: The company’s arm received a demand notice worth Rs 307 crore from the Income Tax department for AY23.

• TARC: The company achieved its highest-ever FY24 presales of Rs 1,612 crore, up 200% YoY, and Q4 pre-sales stood at Rs 1,281 crore, 600% up. The company achieved its highest annual collection to date at Rs 415 crore.

• Wardwizard Innovations And Mobility: The company dispatched over 3,800 units, up 1.5% YoY/ 88% MoM in the month of March.

• Shoppers Stop: The company partnered with Love Child by Masaba to launch an exclusive shop-in-shop at R City Mall, Ghatkopar.

• Kamat Hotels: The company to launch IRA by Orchid hotels in Ayodhya to expand presence in Uttar Pradesh.

Tata Communications (Consolidated, QoQ)

• Revenue up 1.0% at Rs 5,692 crore vs Rs 5,633 crore.

• Ebitda down 6.9% at Rs 1,056 crore vs Rs 1,134 crore.

• Margin at 18.6% vs 20.1%.

• Net profit up 613.7% at Rs 321.5 crore vs Rs 45.1 crore.

• Note: PAT jump on account of lower exceptional costs compared to Q3 (52.1 crore vs 185.5 crore in Q3) and lower tax expense.

ICICI Lombard (YoY)

• Total income up 3% at Rs 5,162 crore vs Rs 5,003 crore.

• Net Profit up 19% at Rs 519 crore vs Rs 437 crore.

Angel One (Consolidated, YoY)

• Revenue up 64% at Rs 1,357 crore vs Rs 826 crore.

• Net Profit up 27% at Rs 340 crore vs Rs 267 crore.

Just Dial (Consolidated, QoQ)

• Revenue up 16.2% at Rs 318.9 crore vs Rs 274.4 crore.

• Ebitda up 58.9% at Rs 119.4 crore vs Rs 75.1 crore.

• Margin at 37.4% vs 27.3%.

• Net profit up 38.4% at Rs 115.7 crore vs Rs 83.6 crore.

Hathway Cable & Datacom Q4FY24 (Consolidated, YoY)

• Revenue up 7.4% at Rs 493 crore vs Rs 459 crore.

• Ebitda up 27.1% at Rs 80.2 crore vs Rs 63.1 crore.

• Margin at 16.3% vs 13.7%.

• Net profit at Rs 34.6 crore vs loss of Rs 14.6 crore.

Infosys, Bajaj Auto, HDFC Life Insurance, ICICI Securities, Mastek, National Standard (India), Network18 Media and Investments, Oriental Hotels, Swaraj Engines, TV18 Broadcast, Accelya Solutions India.

Most share indices in the Asia-Pacific were trading higher as investors look forward to earnings of big tech firms.

The Nikkei 225 was trading 130.19 points or 0.34% lower at 37,831.61, and the KOSPI index was trading 31.48 points or 1.22% higher at 2,615.66. The S&P ASX 200 was trading 27.50 points or 0.36% higher at 7,633.10 as of 06:26 a.m.

Taiwan Manufacturing Co., Tokyo Electron Ltd. will be reporting its quarterly results on Thursday, Bloomberg reported.

The US bond market remained under pressure, with traders sifting through a slew of remarks from Federal Reserve speakers on speculation that policymakers will be in no rush to cut rates, Bloomberg said.

The S&P 500 index and Nasdaq Composite fell by 0.58% and 1.15%, respectively, as of Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 0.12%.

Brent crude was trading 0.07% higher at $87.36 a barrel. Gold rose 0.37% to $2,369.67 an ounce.

The GIFT Nifty was trading 35.5 points or 0.16% higher at 22,147.00 as og 6:54 a.m.

India's benchmark stock indices extended losses for the third consecutive session on Tuesday as geopolitical concerns weighed on investor sentiment. The indices were dragged by banks and information technology stocks, especially Infosys Ltd. and ICICI Bank Ltd.

The NSE Nifty 50 ended 124.6 points, or 0.56%, lower at 22,147.9 and the S&P BSE Sensex declined 456.1 points, or 0.62%, to close at 72,943.68.

Overseas investors stayed net sellers on Tuesday for the third consecutive day. Foreign portfolio investors sold stocks worth Rs 4,468.09 crore and domestic institutional investors remained net buyers for the sixth day and mopped up equities worth Rs 2,040.38 crore, according to provisional data from the National Stock Exchange.

The Indian currency weakened by 9 paise to close at Rs 83.54 against the US dollar.