Sensex Falls Over 200 Points, Nifty Below 24,100 on Weak Global Cues

The share markets in the country opened on a cautious note on Tuesday, with benchmark indices witnessing marginal declines amid continued foreign institutional investor (FII) selling, elevated crude oil prices, and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty in West Asia.

The Nifty 50 index opened at 24,049.90, declining by 42.80 points or 0.18 per cent, while the BSE Sensex started the session at 77,094.79, down by 208.84 points or 0.27 per cent.

Market experts attributed the subdued sentiment to persistent global factors and shifting investor preferences.

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, highlighted the underlying reasons behind sustained FII outflows from India.

Why are Indian stock markets underperforming amid the global AI trade boom?

“S&P 500 set new records this year. Kospi is up 55 per cent YTD while Nifty is down 7.8 per cent YTD. The principal reason behind this underperformance is the booming AI trade, which began in 2025 and is continuing this year,” he added.

“A few AI stocks are driving this AI trade globally. Bulk of portfolio flows are hot money that chase momentum. So long as this market momentum continues, FIIs are likely to continue selling," Vijayakumar said.

"But dominant market trends are temporary. There are strong views that there is a bubble in AI stocks. So there can be a correction in this segment at any time. That can be a trigger for the resumption of portfolio flows into India. Investors should watch out for this trend. When that happens, fairly-valued largecaps will outperform,” he further added.

“Till then, the mid and small caps which don't have significant FII exposure may continue to outperform,” Vijayakumar said.

On the sectoral front, a mixed trend was observed in early trade on the NSE. Pharma and PSU bank stocks remained under pressure, while select sectors showed resilience.

Nifty FMCG edged up by 0.11 per cent, Nifty IT gained 0.24 per cent, Nifty Media rose 0.38 per cent, and Nifty Metal advanced 0.27 per cent.

Investors are also keeping a close watch on corporate earnings, with several companies scheduled to announce their fourth-quarter results for FY26 on Tuesday.

These include Maruti Suzuki India, Dalmia Bharat, Star Health & Allied Insurance Company, Go Digit General Insurance, Bandhan, and Motherson Sumi Wiring India.

Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, said market sentiment is likely to remain fragile in the near term due to global and domestic uncertainties.

(With inputs from ANI)