Sensex, Nifty Hold On To Slim Gains As Adani Stocks Extend Rally: Market Wrap

Indian equity benchmarks shed gains to end marginally higher on Tuesday, after private banks dragged and Adani Group stocks led the gains.

It was spurred by an Indian court panel’s report that found no conclusive evidence of stock price manipulation, as alleged by U.S. short seller Hindenburg Research. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. recouped all its losses from Jan. 23 intraday.

While the metals and media sectors advanced, information technology and real estate shares declined. The headline indices closed above their one-week high after advancing for the third consecutive session in trade.

U.S. equity futures were unchanged, whereas Asian equities were mixed after President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said they had a productive talk on the debt ceiling. While Biden said that he and McCarthy had agreed that default was off the table in ongoing talks, investors remain on tenterhooks.

Tokyo’s Topix fell for the first time in eight days, with semiconductor-related stocks turning lower on news that Japan’s tighter export controls will take effect on July 23.

In Europe, French stocks led declines after the economy grew at the slowest pace in four months. Christian Dior SE, Hermes International, and other luxury shares dropped.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended 18 points higher, or 0.03%, at 61,981.79, while the NSE Nifty 50 closed higher by 34 points, or 0.18%, at 18,348.

Adani Enterprises Ltd., Asian Paints Ltd., Divi's Laboratories Ltd., ITC Ltd., and Infosys Ltd. were positively adding to the change in the Nifty 50.

HDFC Bank Ltd., HCL Technologies Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., Larsen and Toubro Ltd., and Reliance Industries Ltd. were negatively contributing to the change.

All Adani Group stocks advanced in trade as Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. climbed 7.7% intraday, hitting its day's high at Rs 778.50 apiece, becoming the first of the group's 10 listed stocks to recoup all loss after the Hindenburg allegations.

It closed at Rs 769.05 apiece on Jan. 23, ahead of the release of the report.

The broader market indices ended higher; the S&P BSE MidCap was up 0.43%, whereas the S&P BSE SmallCap was higher by 0.11%.

Six out of the 19 sectors compiled by BSE Ltd. advanced, while 13 sectors declined.

The market breadth was split between buyers and sellers. About 1,780 stocks rose, 1,728 declined, and 125 remained unchanged on the BSE.