Indian Indices Trade in Narrow Range at Midday as IT Gains Offset Banking Drag

Indian benchmark indices traded in a narrow range during Tuesday's midday session, with the Nifty holding near the 24,100 mark. Support from IT stocks helped offset selling pressure in banking and financial shares.

As of 12:55 pm, the Nifty 50 was up 10.80 points or 0.04 per cent at 24,091.20, while the Sensex recovered to 77,098.16, gaining 140.89 points or 0.18 per cent. The morning session saw indices swing through various ranges, held back by broad-based selling in the banking and financial sectors.

HCL Technologies led the Nifty gainers, rising 4.05 per cent to ₹1,365.40, with volumes of over 23 lakh shares traded. ITC gained 4.01 per cent to ₹265.75 on volumes exceeding 1.72 crore shares, making it one of the most actively traded stocks. Other top gainers included Adani Ports, which climbed 3.62 per cent to ₹1,650.70; Bharti Airtel, which rose 3.17 per cent to ₹1,869.30; and Reliance Industries, which added 2.39 per cent to ₹1,307.50 with trades worth over ₹1,14,238.71 lakh, recording the highest value among gainers.

Conversely, Shriram Finance and Maruti Suzuki faced the steepest declines, each dropping around 4 per cent. Shriram Finance slid 4.05 per cent to ₹1,064.90, while Maruti declined 4.02 per cent to ₹13,003.00, hitting an intraday low of ₹12,905.00 against a previous close of ₹13,547.00. Additional losses were recorded by Nestle India, which fell 3.13 per cent to ₹1,449.70; Asian Paints, which dropped 3.03 per cent to ₹2,573.30; and IndiGo, which slipped 2.91 per cent to ₹5,081.50.

Sector-wise, Nifty IT emerged as the best-performing sectoral index, whereas Nifty Realty recorded the worst performance. Heavyweights such as ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and SBI exerted significant downward pressure on the benchmark. The broader banking index, Bank Nifty, opened with a gap-down near 57,560 and continued to oscillate within the 57,000–58,000 range. Sudeep Shah, Head of Technical and Derivatives Research at SBI Securities, noted that frontline banking stocks witnessed selling pressure and continued to underperform the broader market, while Nifty’s 14-period daily ATR declined to its lowest level since January 7, 2026, pointing to ongoing compression in market volatility.

Market breadth remained modest, with the Nifty Advance-Decline Ratio standing at 23:27. On the BSE, 1,854 stocks advanced while 1,939 declined out of 4,069 traded securities, with 152 stocks hitting 52-week highs and 98 touching 52-week lows. On the options front, meaningful call writing was observed at the 24,200 and 24,300 strikes, whereas substantial open interest was held at the 24,100 put strike, followed by 24,000.

In the commodities segment, MCX Crude Oil traded near ₹8,250, extending its winning streak for a fifth consecutive session from ₹7,600 lows, facing resistance at ₹8,300–₹8,350, while US WTI crude hovered near $86.6. Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, noted that renewed geopolitical tensions, elevated crude oil prices, and rising global bond yields weighed on overall investor sentiment. Meanwhile, COMEX Gold stayed flat near $4,500, and COMEX Silver held near $67.50, though both metals sustained strong monthly gains for August.

The Indian rupee continued to strengthen, trading near ₹95 against the US dollar and extending its decline for a third consecutive session following rejection around ₹95.50, supported by Reserve Bank of India intervention. Analysts placed immediate Nifty support between 24,020 and 24,000, and resistance at 24,250–24,270 for the remainder of the session.

"The midday market movement highlights a classic sector rotation where IT stocks act as a stabilizing cushion against selling pressure in the banking sector. For businesses and investors, navigating this phase requires close attention to macroeconomic indicators like crude oil prices and currency fluctuations. Market consolidation around these levels indicates a cautious sentiment as participants weigh domestic sector performance against broader global economic factors." — Dr. Shishir Gupta, Founder & CEO, StartupLanes