Nifty rises 0.5% as late buying offsets global and crude worries

Indian equities recovered from an early decline as buying at lower levels offset pressure from mixed global cues, elevated crude prices and geopolitical concerns around US sanctions on Iran. Market reports attributed the recovery to value buying after the morning weakness. The move also came as traders monitored the first monthly derivatives expiry under the new closing auction session for stocks with futures and options contracts.

Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, Eternal, Shriram Finance and Apollo Hospitals were among the reported Nifty gainers. HCL Technologies, Grasim, Cipla, Wipro and Coal India were among the laggards. The available material does not establish a separate company-specific trigger for each move; the broader explanation offered by market participants was a rotation into beaten-down shares after the early sell-off.

The sector pattern pointed to selective domestic buying rather than a broad risk-on move. Infrastructure and industrial names such as L&T, BEL and Adani Ports benefited from interest in capital-goods and project-linked businesses, while consumer-facing names including Trent and Titan were among the stronger large stocks. Power and metals weakened, with Power Grid, NTPC, Tata Steel and Hindalco among the names reported under pressure; the material does not identify a fresh company-specific announcement as the reason for that sector weakness.

The Reserve Bank of India scheduled a two-day variable rate reverse repo auction with a notified amount of Rs 1.75 lakh crore to absorb surplus banking-system liquidity. On the previous day, the RBI had absorbed Rs 1.41 trillion through two VRRR auctions. The immediate implication is tighter management of excess liquidity rather than a change in the policy stance.

The Finance Ministry said the RBI’s special foreign-exchange swap facility had mobilised $72.8 billion as of August 21, including $65.4 billion through FCNR(B) deposits. The strong response led the RBI to bring forward the closing date for new FCNR(B) deposits to August 31 from September 30. The inflow provides support to India’s external buffers, although the rupee remained close to 95.74 per dollar.

No new CPI, IIP, GST, trade or PMI print for India was identified in the material for August 25. The latest inflation commentary cited by Barclays put headline CPI inflation at 4.4% year-on-year in July, but that was not a release made during Tuesday’s session.

Asian shares were under pressure after a technology-led sell-off on Wall Street, while global markets also weighed the next steps in US sanctions against Iran. Reports said investors were positioning cautiously ahead of Nvidia’s results, making the technology complex a source of volatility for Indian IT stocks.

Brent crude held near $92 a barrel after falling in the previous session as markets assessed whether the sanctions would disrupt physical supply. For India, the level remains relevant because it keeps attention on imported energy costs, the rupee and inflation risks. The US 10-year Treasury yield was around 4.70%, while the dollar was broadly firm and gold remained elevated, conditions that can limit the support available to emerging-market equities.

The latest available institutional-flow data were for August 24: foreign investors were net buyers of Rs 1,181.66 crore and domestic institutions bought Rs 2,493.41 crore. Those flows provided a liquidity cushion, but they do not represent Tuesday’s final activity; a same-day FII/DII figure was not available in the material.

Corporate news was concentrated in transactions, orders and fund-raising rather than a new cluster of major listed-company results. TCS approved the acquisition of MHP Management- und IT-Beratung GmbH for an enterprise value of €320 million; Porsche AG also entered a five-year strategic arrangement with MHP and TCS worth €1.25 billion. The disclosures provide a strategic rationale for TCS’s automotive and technology exposure, but no market consensus comparison was available.

Patanjali Foods reported first-quarter FY27 consolidated profit of Rs 335.7 crore, up 86% year-on-year, and revenue of Rs 11,337.5 crore, up 29%. EBITDA rose 69% year-on-year to Rs 543.3 crore and the reported margin was 4.8%. The company also declared two interim dividends. No consensus estimate was provided in the material, so the result cannot be described as a beat or miss against the street.

Aegis Logistics executed a Rs 525 crore business-transfer agreement involving a 36,000-metric-tonne ammonia storage terminal at Pipavav Port. Afcons Infrastructure received an arbitral award of Rs 335.50 crore in its favour from UPEIDA. HEG elevated Riju Jhunjhunwala to chairman, managing director and chief executive officer effective September 1, and appointed Neha Rajvanshi as chief financial officer. Kotak Mahindra Bank allotted $650 million of senior notes, while ICICI Bank priced $1 billion of senior unsecured notes carrying Baa3 and BBB ratings from Moody’s and S&P Global Ratings, respectively.

The primary market remained active. Augmont Enterprises’ issue closed after strong subscription, while Sumax Engineering began its NSE Emerge offering. Sunshine Pictures’ debut added a fresh listing signal, opening at a premium to its issue price. Annu Projects also opened its Rs 175.06 crore IPO, with bidding scheduled to close on August 28.

Other capital-market activity included Piramal Finance’s QIP, which opened on August 24 with a floor price of Rs 2,102.65 per share, and the proposed sale by the government of up to a 6% stake in Hindustan Copper through an offer for sale at a Rs 514 floor price. The available material did not provide a completed Tuesday block-deal value for that offer.