FX.co ★ Sensex, Nifty Modestly Higher As Stocks Recover From Early Setback

After a weak start and a subsequent decline to lower levels, the Indian stock market bounced back into positive territory on Monday morning, with select blue-chip stocks recovering and posting strong gains.

The early setback stemmed primarily from the initial reaction to Hindenburg Research's allegations that the chairperson of the Indian market regulator, SEBI, had stakes in obscure offshore entities linked to the alleged Adani money siphoning scandal.

Shares of Adani Group companies fell sharply, affecting overall sentiment during early trades. However, these stocks, including those from the Adani Group, recovered swiftly, erasing most of the initial losses. Investors shifted their focus to earnings and awaited key inflation and industrial output data, expected later in the day.

The BSE benchmark Sensex, which had plummeted nearly 480 points to 79,226.13 earlier, rose by 312.15 points or 0.39% to 80,018.06 a short while ago.

The broader Nifty 50 index of the National Stock Exchange climbed 88.70 points or 0.36% to 24,456.20, rebounding from a low of 24,212.10.

JSW Steel emerged as the top gainer in the Sensex, up by 2.2%. HDFC Bank, Infosys, and Axis Bank increased by 1.3% to 1.6%. Kotak Bank, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, and ITC saw moderate gains.

Mahindra & Mahindra, NTPC, Power Grid Corporation, Nestle, State Bank of India, Hindustan Unilever, and Reliance Industries experienced declines ranging from 0.5% to 1.2%.

Among the Adani Group shares, Adani Enterprises, Adani Green Energy, Adani Ports, Adani Power, and Adani Wilmar dropped by 1% to 2.5%. Adani Total Gas fell by more than 4%.

Shares of Jubilant FoodWorks surged over 5% following strong quarterly results. Sun TV Network shares declined more than 8% after the company reported a 6.21% drop in standalone profit for the first quarter of the current financial year, amounting to Rs 546.98 crore.

Voltas Limited shares soared by more than 8% thanks to a significant increase in the company's consolidated net profit, which surged to Rs 334.23 crore in the first quarter of the financial year 2024-25, compared to Rs 129.29 crore in the year-ago quarter.

The market breadth is nearly neutral. On the BSE, 1,887 stocks remained in positive territory, while 1,962 were weak. A total of 153 stocks remained unchanged from their previous closing levels.