Equity benchmarks opened in negative territory on Tuesday, tracking subdued global cues and a weakening rupee that hit a fresh record low for the fourth consecutive session. The opened at ₹85,025.61 against its previous close of ₹85,213.36 and was trading at ₹84,777.45, down 435.91 points or 0.51 per cent as of 10:00 am. The 50 opened at ₹25,951.50 compared to its previous close of ₹26,027.30 and was trading at ₹25,902.70, down 124.60 points or 0.48 per cent.
“Equity markets opened on a negative note as persistent weakness in the Indian rupee—hitting a fresh record low against the US dollar for the fourth consecutive session—combined with weakness in overseas equities dampened investor sentiment,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money. “This cautious backdrop prompted broad-based profit-booking across the market, reflecting a risk-averse stance at the start of the session.”
Metal stocks led the declines, with emerging as the top loser, falling 3.67 per cent to ₹1,237.60. dropped 3.10 per cent to ₹289.20, while declined 1.42 per cent to ₹1,099.00. Tata Steel lost 1.31 per cent to ₹170.60, and Bharat Electronics Limited fell 1.20 per cent to ₹386.05.
On the gainers’ side, consumer stocks showed resilience. led the pack, rising 1.11 per cent to ₹3,909.10. gained 1.04 per cent to ₹1,256.40, while advanced 1.00 per cent to ₹1,169.00. Bharti Airtel climbed 0.96 per cent to ₹2,089.60, and HDFC Life Insurance added 0.80 per cent to ₹778.90.
“Nifty briefly slipped below its 20-day exponential moving average at 25,965 yesterday but recovered and closed decisively above it, indicating resilience among market participants,” said Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities. “A sustained move above 26,058 would signal a short-term bullish breakout and open the path for higher levels in the range of 26,200-26,300.”
continued their selling spree, offloading equities worth ₹1,468 crore on December 15, while Domestic Institutional Investors provided support by purchasing equities worth ₹1,792 crore on the same day. “Persistent FII outflows and continued pressure on the rupee near record lows remain key near-term headwinds,” Ponmudi R noted. “However, strong participation from domestic institutional investors and retail flows continues to provide a cushion against deeper downside risks.”
“The market is moving into a consolidation mode in the near-term,” said Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited. “Since sustained FII selling is easily getting absorbed by DII buying and economic fundamentals are indicating significant improvement, the market will find support on weakness.”
Analysts highlighted key technical levels for traders. “The 25,900 level remains the crucial downside support; a break below this could open the path toward the next support at 25,800,” said Ponmudi R. On the upside, resistance is placed at 26,050-26,100, with a decisive breakout potentially paving the way toward 26,300-26,350.
was trading near 59,150, with analysts noting that “the 59,600 level remains the critical trigger for bullish continuation,” according to Ponmudi R. “A sustained move above this resistance could pave the way for an upside toward 59,750-59,800.”