Sensex, Nifty end marginally higher; RIL limits upside

Bharti Airtel, , , , , and were the top contributors to the Sensex. However, Reliance Industries (RIL), , , and M&M exerted downward pressure on the index. alone dragged the indices down by 127 points.

Among individual stocks, jumped 20% to a record high after reporting a profit in the March quarter compared to a loss a year earlier. The stock was the top gainer in the Nifty smallcap100 index, which rose 1.23%.

rose nearly 3% after CLSA upgraded the stock to "buy" from "out-perform". The brokerage projected the company to be the key beneficiary of Vodafone Idea's fundraising.

On the sectoral front, Nifty Realty surged by 2.6%, with , Prestige, and leading the gains. Additionally, Nifty Auto, FMCG, IT, Media, and Consumer Durables sectors also saw gains ranging from 0.5% to 0.7%.

Expert Take

"The domestic market exhibited range-bound performance, tracking positive global cues with sustained outperformance of the broader market. While tensions between Iran and Israel were perceived to have limited escalation, the uptick in crude prices suggests investors’ reassessing the risks. With higher levels of dollar index and US bond yields, FIIs are expected to continue with outflows, but inflows from DIIs are supporting the recovery," said Vinod Nair, head of research at .

Rupak De, senior technical analyst at LKP Securities said, “The Nifty remained sideways throughout the session as it failed to provide any directional breakout. On the higher end, the range of 22,350-22,400 is likely to act as a resistance zone; a decisive breakout above 22,400 might trigger a rally in the market. On the lower end, support is positioned at 22,250; a breach below this level might weaken the bullish sentiment."

Global Markets

Global shares rose on Tuesday, driven by a recovery on Wall Street, where investor focus is pinned on earnings reports from the US.

The MSCI All-World index, which on Friday hit a two-month low, was up 0.2%, lifted by gains in Europe, where the FTSE 100 hit a record high, while the STOXX 600 traded at one-week highs thanks to the technology sector.

Crude Oil

Oil prices gained on Tuesday after stronger economic data from Europe, as investors also weighed the potential fallout from any fresh US sanctions on Iran's oil exports with tensions remaining high in the Middle East.

Global benchmark Brent crude oil futures traded 80 cents or 0.9% higher at $87.80 a barrel by 0847 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures also gained 71 cents or 0.9% to $82.61 a barrel.

Rupee Ends Flat

The Indian rupee ended little changed on Tuesday as dollar demand from importers pulled the South Asian currency back from the near two-week high it hit during the session.

The rupee closed at 83.3425 against the US dollar, barely changed from its close at 83.3625 in the previous session.

(With inputs from agencies)