IT stocks lead D-Street charge as rate cut speculation mounts

From the Sensex pack, HUL, Bharati Airtel, , , M&M and closed with gains, while , , , UltraTech Cements, and ended with cuts.

Meanwhile, Nifty IT index rose about 0.6%, helped by firming bets of a US rate cut in September and a positive earnings outlook for the sector on the back of results from and .

IT companies earn a significant share of their revenue from the US, and a rate cut in the world's largest economy could lead to improvement in client spending and spur further foreign inflows into Indian equities.

Nifty Realty index also surged 1.7%, led by , , and Prestige Estates Project.

Among individual stocks, closed 2% lower after receiving a warning from the markets regulator for old transactions with its now wound-down banking unit.

Meanwhile, rose 4% after a surge in quarterly profit, while Century Textiles rose 5.5% after its unit Birla Estates bought a land parcel with an estimated revenue potential of Rs 1,400 crore.

Jio Financial fell over 3% after posting a drop in June quarter profit.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of the bulls. About 2,005 stocks gained, 1,908 declined, and 95 remained unchanged on the BSE.

Expert Views

"The domestic market failed to uphold the opening gains as investor concerns about current valuations and subdued expectations for Q1FY25 earnings. With the earnings season set to fully commence this week, investors are likely to gain a broader sectoral perspective," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Globally, the dovish comment from the Fed chief on inflation trajectory and a drop in US 10-year yield ahead of US retail sales data increased the likelihood of a rate cut in September, Nair said.

Aditya Gaggar, Director of Progressive Shares, said, "The index oscillated in a tight range of 24,600-24,650 and finally settled at 24,613. Back-to-back DOJI candles at record levels indicates rejection at the higher levels; however, with each day passed, the support level is shifted higher and now the immediate support is placed at 24,500."

Global Markets

Global shares dipped on Tuesday as investors pondered what Donald Trump's victory would mean for the rest of the world, while the yen slid against a firmer dollar, prompting more warnings from Japanese officials after last week's suspected intervention.

The MSCI All-World index dipped 0.1% but remained in sight of record highs, while in Europe, the STOXX 600 fell 0.3%, driven lower by a handful of earnings misses and the prospect of intensifying trade tensions with the United States under a second Trump administration.

S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were up 0.1%, suggesting a modestly higher open later on.

Crude Oil

Oil prices dipped on Tuesday on worries of a slowing Chinese economy crimping demand and despite a growing consensus that the US Federal Reserve could begin cutting its key interest rate as soon as September.

Brent futures were down 67 cents, or 0.8%, to $84.18 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 72 cents, or 0.9%, to $81.19.

Rupee Ends Flat

The Indian rupee ended little changed on Tuesday, as dollar sales from exporters and mild inflows helped curb the pressure from weakness in most of its Asian peers, including the Chinese yuan.

The rupee ended at 83.5825 against the US dollar, compared to its previous close of 83.5925. The currency hovered in a tight band between 83.57 and 83.6025 through the session.

(With inputs from agencies)