India’s BSE Sensex slipped around 0.2% to 77,234 on Tuesday, extending the previous session’s losses, as investor sentiment stayed cautious amid persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and ahead of the Nifty 50 monthly derivatives expiry. The Nifty 50 also declined, with 14 of the 16 major sectors trading in the red, while rising crude oil prices further weighed on Indian equities.
Markets were bracing for heightened volatility as Tuesday marked the first monthly Nifty derivatives expiry under the new closing-auction framework. Global risk appetite was also subdued ahead of Nvidia’s earnings release and amid renewed tensions between the United States and Iran.
Despite these near-term headwinds, foreign portfolio inflows lent some support, with overseas investors purchasing more than $2.5 billion worth of Indian equities so far in August, helping to cushion the impact of higher oil prices and geopolitical uncertainty. Among the notable decliners were Hindustan (-6.7%), IIFL Finance (-3.1%), Netweb (-3.0%), and TCS (-0.8%).
