Markets end marginally higher; Sensex extends gain for 2nd session on foreign fund inflows
Mumbai, Apr 29 (PTI): Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ticked higher for the second straight session in a volatile trade on Tuesday as investors turned cautious amid concern over geopolitical tensions.
However, intense buying in blue-chips Reliance Industries, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services and unabated foreign capital inflows supported the domestic market.
The 30-share BSE benchmark gauge climbed 70.01 points or 0.09 per cent to settle at 80,288.38. During the day, it jumped 442.94 points or 0.55 per cent to 80,661.31.
The NSE Nifty ended marginally up by 7.45 points or 0.03 per cent to 24,335.95.
"After showing a sustainable upside bounce on Monday, Nifty shifted into a consolidation with a small high-low range on Tuesday and closed the day higher by 7 points.
"After opening on a positive note, the market was not able to continue with the morning gains and slipped into minor weakness from the highs in the early part of the session. It later shifted into a range-bound action for the better part of the session," Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities, said.
From the Sensex firms, Reliance Industries, Tech Mahindra, Eternal, HCL Tech, Infosys, IndusInd Bank, Tata Consultancy Services and Bajaj Finserv were the biggest gainers.
In contrast, UltraTech Cement, Sun Pharma, Power Grid, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the laggards.
The BSE midcap gauge climbed 0.23 per cent and smallcap index went up marginally by 0.09 per cent.
Among sectoral indices, BSE Focused IT rallied 1.23 per cent, IT (1.13 per cent), capital goods (0.94 per cent), teck (0.76 per cent), industrials (0.70 per cent) and consumer durables (0.60 per cent).
Metal, utilities, commodities, telecommunication, services, bankex and financial services were the laggards.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,474.10 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.
"The market exhibited largely range-bound oscillation, as caution prevailed amid geopolitical concerns over border tensions. The sustained inflows from FIIs provided support to market sentiment and restricted further pessimism. Meanwhile, mixed Q4 results have raised the risk of downward revisions to FY26 projections," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled in the positive territory, while Shanghai SSE Composite ended marginally lower.
European markets were trading mostly in the green. US markets ended mostly higher on Monday.
"Markets traded lacklustre and ended nearly unchanged in the absence of any significant trigger. After an initial uptick, the Nifty moved in a narrow range and closed flat," Ajit Mishra - SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said.
Meanwhile, Pakistani troops violated the ceasefire along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir for a fifth consecutive night, expanding the arc of violations to the Akhnoor sector of Jammu district, an official said on Tuesday.
This was the fifth consecutive night that Pakistan resorted to unprovoked firing along the Line of Control (LoC) amid heightened tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad following last week's terror attack in Pahalgam.
Nearly 50 public parks and gardens located in vulnerable areas of Kashmir Valley have been shut as a precautionary measure in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack.
India's industrial production growth remained almost flat at 3 per cent in March sequentially, though on a year-on-year basis, it slipped from 5.5 per cent, mainly due to poor performance of the manufacturing, mining, and power sectors.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 1.59 per cent to USD 64.81 a barrel.
The BSE benchmark index Sensex jumped 1,005.84 points or 1.27 per cent to settle at 80,218.37 on Monday. The Nifty rallied 289.15 points or 1.20 per cent to 24,328.50.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
LoP Ashoka targets CM govt over corruption, says being 'shameless' in public life not forgivable
Bengaluru (PTI): Targeting Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the Congress government in Karnataka on corruption, BJP leader R Ashoka on Friday said, being foolish was forgivable, but being "shameless" in public life was not.
The Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly claimed that in just 30 months of its tenure, the Congress administration has broken every previous record on corruption-related controversies.
He was responding to Siddaramaiah's post on 'X' on Thursday hitting back at the BJP, stating that Upa Lokayukta Justice Veerappa's claims of "63 per cent corruption" were based on his report in November 2019, when BJP's B S Yediyurappa was the CM.
"But Ashoka, without understanding the Upa Lokayukta's statement properly, has ended up tying the BJP's own bells of sins onto our heads and has effectively shot himself in the foot," the CM had said, as he accused Ashoka of foolishness for trying to twist Veerappa's statement to target the current government.
Responding, Ashoka said, "it is one thing to be called foolish in politics, that can be forgiven."
"But in public life, especially in the Chief Minister's chair, one must never become shameless," Ashoka posted on 'X' on Friday addressing Siddaramaiah.
Noting that the CM himself had admitted on the floor of the Assembly that a Rs 87 crore scam took place in the Valmiki Development Corporation, he said that when a CM acknowledges such a massive irregularity inside the floor of the House, the natural expectation is immediate action and accountability.
"But instead of taking responsibility, you continue in office as if nothing has happened. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness," he asked.
Pointing out that the CM's Economic Advisor and senior Congress MLA Basavaraja Rayareddy had publicly stated that under Congress rule, Karnataka has become No.1 in corruption, Ashoka said, "Yet, you still cling to the Chief Minister's chair without a moment of introspection. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness."
Senior Congress MLA C R Patil had exposed the "money for House" racket in the Housing Department and even warned that the government would collapse if the details he has were made public, Ashoka said.
"Despite such serious allegations from within your own party (Congress), you neither initiated an inquiry nor acted against the concerned minister. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness," Ashoka asked the CM.
Highlighting the "40 percent commission" allegation Congress made against the previous BJP government, the opposition leader said, the commission that the Siddaramaiah government appointed concluded that the accusation was baseless.
"After your own panel demolished your own claim, what moral right do you have to continue repeating that allegation. What should the people of Karnataka call this, if not sheer shamelessness," he asked.
For the last two and a half years, Karnataka has been 'drowning' in corruption, scandals, irregularities and allegations across departments. Ashoka said, "If I begin listing every case that emerged under your government, even 24 hours would not be enough."
"And the most tragic aspect of your administration is this: the unbearable pressure, corruption demands and administrative harassment under your government pushed several officers and contractors into extreme distress - including the suicide of Chandrasekharan which exposed the Valmiki Development Corporation scam - a sign of how deeply broken the system has become under your watch," he said.
Instead of fixing this hopeless environment, the government has tried to bury every complaint and silence every voice, he charged.
"Being foolish is forgivable, but being shameless in public life is definitely not."
"When your own ministers admit scams, when your own advisors certify Karnataka as No.1 in corruption, and when your own MLAs expose rackets inside your departments - clinging to power without accountability is not leadership. It is shamelessness in its purest form." PTI KSU
Earlier on Thursday Ashoka had demanded that the corruption case and allegations in the state against the Congress government be handed over to a CBI investigation, citing a reported statement by Upalokaykta Justice Veerappa alleging "63 per cent corruption", following which Siddaramaiah hit back at the BJP leader.
