Mumbai, Jan 28 (NationPress) The Indian equity markets experienced significant gains on Wednesday, continuing the upward trend from the previous trading day following the finalization of a long-anticipated trade agreement with the European Union (EU), which has sparked optimism regarding an economic uplift.

By 9:30 AM, the Sensex climbed by 545 points, or 0.67 percent, reaching 82,402, while the Nifty saw an increase of 183 points, or 0.73 percent, hitting 25,359.

The main broad-cap indices aligned with the benchmark indices; the Nifty Midcap 100 rose by 0.77 percent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 surged 1.17 percent.

All sectoral indices were trading positively, with the exception of FMCG and PSU banks, which reported minor declines. The Nifty oil and gas sector emerged as the top performer, increasing by 2.42 percent amid rising global oil prices, with Brent crude reaching levels of $67, not seen since October.

Other sectors like realty, metals, and media also recorded considerable gains, rising by 1.54 percent, 1.17 percent, and 1.45 percent, respectively.

Market analysts noted that immediate support lies at the 25,000 level, followed by 24,800, while resistance is found in the 25,300–25,400 range.

They pointed out that the ongoing selling from foreign institutional investors (FIIs) is due to relatively high valuations in India, modest earnings growth, and the persistent weakness of the rupee. In contrast, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have been buying, supported by fund flows and expectations of earnings recovery.

A significant aspect of the current market landscape is the substantial short positions held by FIIs in index futures. This short selling is backed by continuous cash market selling, but any news or event that triggers short covering could result in a market surge.

In the Asian markets, China's Shanghai index rose by 0.49 percent, and Shenzhen increased by 0.09 percent. Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei fell by 0.53 percent, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed by 2.31 percent. South Korea's Kospi saw a gain of 1.19 percent.

The US markets finished largely positive in the last trading session, with the Nasdaq advancing by 0.91 percent. The S&P 500 gained 0.41 percent, while the Dow declined by 0.83 percent.

Following the successful completion of the India-EU trade deal, investors are now looking forward to quarterly earnings reports set to be released this week, alongside the upcoming Union Budget scheduled for presentation on Sunday (February 1).

On January 27, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold net equities worth Rs 3,068 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of equities worth Rs 9,000 crore.

aar/na