Benchmarks lose steam as profit booking wipes out early gains

The domestic equity benchmarks ended slightly lower on Tuesday as a sharp fall in the rupee and cautious global sentiment wiped out early gains on Dalal Street. The rupee weakened to a fresh record low of 96.60 against the US dollar, prompting investors to book profits after the recent rally.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 114.19 points or 0.15% to close at 75,200.85, while the Nifty 50 fell 31.95 points or 0.14% to settle at 23,618, slipping below the 23,650 mark.

The benchmarks opened on a positive note but lost steam as mixed global cues and rising US bond yields weighed on sentiment. Concerns over possible foreign fund outflows also resurfaced as higher US yields reduced the appeal of emerging markets like India.

Sectorally, IT stocks witnessed value buying and supported the market, while private banks and financial shares remained under pressure.

Despite weakness in the frontline indices, broader markets outperformed. The BSE MidCap index rose 0.73% and the SmallCap index gained 1.17%, signalling continued interest in broader market stocks.

Market breadth remained positive on the BSE, where 2,590 shares advanced against 1,596 declines. Meanwhile, the India VIX, the market's volatility gauge, dropped 4.86% to 18.68, indicating easing fear among investors.

The Nifty continues to face strong resistance near the 23,800 level, with near-term sentiment remaining cautious unless the index decisively moves above that mark.

Fuel Hike:

Fuel prices were increased again on Tuesday, with petrol and diesel rates rising by up to 90 paise per liter across major cities, marking the second hike in less than a week. The latest revision follows a sharp Rs 3 per liter increase announced on Friday.

In Mumbai, petrol prices climbed 91 paise to Rs 107.59 per liter, while diesel rose 94 paise to Rs 94.08 per liter.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 96.5200 compared with its close of 96.2000 during the previous trading session. The rupee hit a fresh record low of 96.60 against the U.S. dollar today.

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper declined 0.29% to 7.100 compared with the previous session close of 7.121.

MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2026 settlement rose 0.34% to Rs 159,950.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.25% to 99.23.

The United States 10-year bond yield declined 0.35% to 4.608.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for July 2026 settlement declined $1.86 or 1.66% to $110.24 a barrel.

Global Markets:

European market traded higher on Tuesday as investors tracked developments from the two-day summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

Investor sentiment was also influenced by fresh economic data from the UK, which showed the unemployment rate edged up to 5% in the three months to March from 4.9% in the previous month.

Asian market ended mixed as oil prices eased slightly after US President Donald Trump said a planned military strike on Iran had been postponed.

In a social media post, Trump said US military officials were instructed to call off a 'scheduled attack on Iran tomorrow' following requests from leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. He added that negotiations were underway for a broader agreement that would ensure Iran does not develop nuclear weapons.

However, Trump warned that the US military remained prepared for a large-scale assault if talks fail to produce an acceptable outcome.

Despite signs of easing tensions, uncertainty in the Middle East persisted. Iran continues to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, while the US blockade on Iranian ports remains in place. The Strait of Hormuz is a crucial global energy corridor that handles a significant share of worldwide oil and gas shipments.

On the economic front, Japan reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter growth. The country's GDP expanded at an annualised pace of 2.1%, higher than market estimates of 1.7% and above the previous quarter's 1.3% growth.

Investors are also watching the meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung later in the day.

Overnight, US markets ended mixed. The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed lower amid weakness in technology stocks and caution around oil prices and bond yields. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, ended modestly higher.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty IT index surged 3.23% to 29,308. The index is up 7.12% in three consecutive trading sessions.

Coforge jumped 4.73%, Infosys climbed 4.51% and LTIMindtree advanced 4.43%. Mphasis gained 3.24%, HCLTech rose 2.91% and Oracle Financial Services Software added 2.83%. Tech Mahindra increased 2.59%, Persistent Systems rose 2.51%, while Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro gained 2.05% and 1.73%, respectively.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Group stocks moved higher after reports said the US Department of Justice had dropped all securities and wire fraud charges against billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani in a case linked to alleged bribery in solar power contracts. The allegations, first made in November 2024 over an alleged $250 million bribery scheme tied to renewable energy projects, had earlier triggered sharp volatility in Adani stocks.

Adani Green Energy rose 0.64%, while Adani Total Gas gained 2.16%, Adani Enterprises advanced 1.31% and Adani Energy Solutions (0.09%) ended higher.

Separately, Adani Enterprises disclosed that it agreed to pay $275 million to the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to settle an Iran sanctions-related matter without admitting wrongdoing. The case involved LPG shipments sourced from a Dubai-based trader between November 2023 and June 2025 that US authorities suspected may have originated from Iran.

Shares of oil marketing companies moved higher on Tuesday after the government raised petrol and diesel prices for the second time in less than a week.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation gained 3.37%. Indian Oil Corporation rose 2.42%, while Bharat Petroleum Corporation advanced 2.01%.

Meanwhile, Indian Oil Corporation's standalone net profit surged 56.61% to Rs 11,377.51 crore in Q4 FY26 compared with Rs 7,264.85 crore in Q4 FY25. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) rose 6.62% YoY to Rs 2,07,883.23 crore in Q4 FY26 as against Rs 1,94,967.02 crore reported in Q4 FY25.

Apollo Micro Systems surged 9.55% after the company's consolidated profit after tax rose 168.7% YoY and 46.5% QoQ to Rs 37.62 crore in Q4 FY26. Net sales increased 81.3% YoY and 16.3% sequentially to Rs 293.26 crore during the quarter.

Afcons Infrastructure shed 0.57% after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 88.40 crore in Q4 FY26, compared with a net profit of Rs 110.93 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Revenue from operations fell 18.9% YoY to Rs 2,613.84 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2026.

Astral fell 6.26%. The company reported an 18.79% year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 213 crore for Q4 FY26, compared with Rs 179.3 crore in Q4 FY25. Revenue from operations rose 24.21% YoY to Rs 2,088.5 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2026.

Timken India rallied 3%. The company has reported 16.8% fall in consolidated net profit to Rs 158.31 crore despite a 14.5% increase in revenue to Rs 1,089.83 crore in Q4 FY26 as compared with Q4 FY25.

DOMS Industries slipped 2.05%. The company reported a 17.1% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 56.7 crore in Q4 FY26 as against Rs 48.4 crore posted in Q4 FY25. Revenue from operations surged 18.7% to Rs 604 crore in Q4 FY26 from Rs 508.7 crore recorded in the corresponding quarter last year.

Vascon Engineers hit an upper circuit of 5% after the company said that it has received a Letter of Intent worth Rs 131.58 crore from Reliance Industries for construction works at its Jamnagar expansion project.

JK Paper rose 6.60% after the company's consolidated net profit surged 35.8% to Rs 91.98 crore on a 17.2% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 1,965.95 crore in Q4 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

Indraprastha Gas jumped 3.77%. The company has reported a 25.17% fall in consolidated net profit to Rs 340.54 crore on an 5.69% increase in total net revenue from operations to Rs 4,584.58 crore in Q4 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

Triveni Turbine climbed 6.94% after the company reported 7.7% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 101.9 crore on a 26.3% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 679.6 crore in Q4 FY26 as compared with Q4 FY25.

Somany Ceramics surged 12.60% after the company's consolidated net profit jumped 77.23% to Rs 37.82 crore on 6.02% increase in revene from operations to Rs 811.97 crore in Q4 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

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