India's major stock indices finished in positive territory on Tuesday, supported by advances in Consumer Durables, Capital Goods and Public Sector Undertakings names.
On the National Stock Exchange at the close, the Nifty 50 rose 0.17%. The BSE Sensex 30 finished the session 0.21% higher.
Among Nifty 50 constituents, Adani Enterprises Ltd (NSE:ADEL) led the gainers, climbing 2.71% - a rise of 59.20 points - to close at 2,243.80. ITC Ltd (NSE:ITC) added 2.22%, up 7.05 points to finish at 325.00, while Bharat Electronics Ltd (NSE:BAJE) gained 1.97%, or 8.65 points, ending the session at 446.65.
On the downside, Hindalco Industries Ltd. (NSE:HALC) fell 1.81%, a drop of 16.45 points, to close at 891.00. Eternal Ltd (NSE:ETEA) declined 1.67%, or 4.80 points, to 281.80, and Trent Ltd (NSE:TREN) slipped 1.41%, down 59.50 points to 4,170.00.
The BSE Sensex 30 showed a similar pattern of selective strength. ITC Ltd (BO:ITC) was among the best performers, up 2.33% to 325.35. Infosys Ltd (BO:INFY) rose 1.83% to settle at 1,391.30, and Larsen & Toubro Ltd (BO:LART) gained 1.74% to close at 4,275.10.
Conversely on the BSE, Eternal Ltd (BO:ETEA) fell 1.52% to 281.70 in late trade, Tata Steel Ltd (BO:TISC) lost 1.31% to finish at 203.05 and Reliance Industries Ltd (BO:RELI) was down 0.87% to 1,423.90 at the close.
Market breadth at the NSE was positive, with 1,537 stocks rising versus 961 declining and 45 unchanged. At the Bombay Stock Exchange, 2,269 stocks advanced, 1,698 declined and 145 were unchanged.
Shares of Larsen & Toubro Ltd (BO:LART) moved to an intraday high, rising 1.74% - or 73.00 points - to reach 4,275.10.
Volatility cooled as the India VIX, which measures implied volatility of Nifty 50 options, fell 4.95% to 12.67.
Commodity and currency markets were mixed. Gold Futures for April delivery declined 1.98%, down $99.79, to $4,946.51 a troy ounce. Crude oil for April delivery climbed 0.80%, up $0.50, to $63.25 a barrel, while the April Brent contract eased 0.58%, or $0.40, to $68.25 a barrel.
In currency trading, USD/INR moved lower by 0.10% to 90.67 and EUR/INR fell 0.16% to 107.42. The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.22% at 97.03.
Contextual note - Market moves on the day were modest and concentrated in a subset of large-cap names and select sectors, while overall volatility declined as measured by the India VIX.