• The Indian stock market opened flat on Tuesday, with the Sensex and Nifty showing slight gains.
• Buying was observed in the auto, IT, FMCG, and PSU bank sectors, while selling was seen in the financial services, pharma, metal, and energy sectors.
• Positive global trends influenced the Indian market, despite concerns over a strong US dollar and high bond yields.
• Domestic investors showed more confidence in the market than their foreign counterparts, indicating a shift in market dynamics.

The Indian stock market began Tuesday's trading session on a flat note, buoyed by positive global cues. Despite a subdued start, market sentiment remained optimistic as the Sensex and Nifty maintained slight gains. At approximately 9:28 am, the BSE Sensex was trading at 78,588.23, reflecting a gain of 48.06 points or 0.06 percent. Meanwhile, the Nifty 50 stood at 23,766.30, up by 12.85 points or 0.05 percent. The market breadth was positive, with 1,302 stocks advancing and 877 declining on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Market Trends and Sectoral Front

The market trend remained positive. However, experts noted that the relief rally witnessed on Monday might face challenges in maintaining momentum. "Two sets of factors - external and internal - will restrain a sustained rally," experts remarked. They highlighted external factors such as the strong US dollar and high bond yields, which are likely to prompt Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) to sell during rallies. Internal factors include concerns over growth and earnings slowdown in India, which are expected to act as near-term deterrents for market bulls.

On the sectoral front, buying was seen in the auto, IT, FMCG and PSU bank sectors. Conversely, selling was observed in the financial services, pharma, metal and energy sectors. In the Sensex pack, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, TCS, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank, Infosys, ICICI Bank, L&T, Asian Paints, Maruti, and SBI were the top gainers. On the other hand, Zomato, Power Grid, Titan, NTPC, UltraTech Cement and IndusInd Bank were the top losers.

Global Market Influence and Investor Behavior

The Dow Jones closed in the last trading session at 42,906.95 after gaining 0.16 per cent. The S&P 500 added 0.73 per cent to 5,974.07 and the Nasdaq gained 0.98 per cent to close at 19,764.88. In the Asian markets, except Seoul and Japan, the markets of Hong Kong, China, Jakarta and Bangkok were trading in green. This positive global trend had a significant influence on the Indian market.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 168.71 crore on December 23, while domestic institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 2,227.68 crore on the same day. This indicates a shift in the market dynamics, with domestic investors showing more confidence in the market than their foreign counterparts.