Indian stocks rise after Donald Trump signals possible Iran deal

Indian equity benchmarks traded higher in early deals on Tuesday after comments by US President Donald Trump raised hopes of a possible diplomatic breakthrough with Iran, easing concerns over escalating tensions in West Asia.

The Sensex climbed as much as 368 points, or 0.48 per cent, to touch an intraday high of 75,683, while the Nifty advanced 110 points, or 0.45 per cent, to trade at 23,758 during morning trade.

Technology shares led the rally, with the Nifty IT index surging 4 per cent. The Nifty MidSmall IT & Telecom index also gained nearly 3 per cent, while the Nifty Chemicals index rose 1.16 per cent.

However, some sectors lagged behind the broader market. The Nifty Private Bank index edged down 0.11 per cent, while auto and metal stocks traded marginally lower.

Among individual stocks on the Nifty, Hindalco Industries emerged as the biggest loser, declining more than 1 per cent. Coal India slipped 0.93 per cent and ONGC fell 0.81 per cent. Titan Company, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Eternal also traded lower.

JSW Steel, UltraTech Cement and Shriram Finance registered modest declines, while banking heavyweights HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank were marginally weaker.

Market analysts said investors were increasingly turning towards Indian equities amid concerns over stretched valuations in global artificial intelligence-linked stocks.

They added that foreign institutional investor inflows could further support large-cap financial stocks, particularly leading banks, which continue to offer relatively attractive valuations and stable growth prospects.

Analysts also cautioned that broader economic concerns, including slowing growth, inflationary pressures and currency weakness, remain key risks amid the ongoing global energy crisis.

As a result, investors were advised to focus on relatively defensive sectors such as pharmaceuticals, power and defence-related companies.

On the corporate earnings front, analysts said fourth-quarter results had largely exceeded expectations, indicating that earlier fiscal and monetary support measures had helped the economy regain momentum before the latest energy-related disruptions.

They also noted that a swift resolution to tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz could help reduce the scale of the anticipated economic slowdown this year.

Markets drew support after Trump said he had halted a proposed military strike on Iran following a peace overture from Tehran and expressed optimism about securing a nuclear agreement.

In the commodities market, crude oil prices declined sharply. Brent crude fell 2.74 per cent to $109.02 a barrel, while US benchmark WTI crude dropped 2.16 per cent to $102.12 a barrel.

Across Asia, trading remained mixed. Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s KOSPI declined by as much as 3 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded marginally higher.

Wall Street ended mostly subdued overnight, with the S&P 500 slipping 0.07 per cent and the Nasdaq falling 0.51 per cent.

With IANS inputs