Markets Pare Sharp Morning Gains at Midday; Sensex Sheds Most of 550-pt Opening Surge

Mumbai, May 6: Indian equity markets opened Wednesday’s session on a strong note, with the BSE Sensex surging nearly 550 points at the open as hopes of a US-Iran peace deal and retreating crude oil prices lifted risk sentiment sharply.

However, the benchmarks steadily shed those gains through the morning session, with the Sensex paring back to 77,082.96, up just 65.17 points or 0.08% at 11:41 am, while the Nifty 50 which had also opened strongly trimmed its advance to just 53.95 points or 0.22% to trade at 24,086.75 at 11:43 am, as profit-booking and residual caution around global uncertainties tempered the initial enthusiasm.

The pullback from the morning highs suggests markets remain in a consolidation mode, with investors reluctant to chase the rally aggressively even as the diplomatic breakthrough on the Iran front offered a meaningful reason for optimism.

Markets started Wednesday’s session weak, reflecting residual negativity from Tuesday’s 0.36% decline and ongoing global uncertainties linked to the Iran conflict. Early selling dragged the Nifty briefly below 24,000, mirroring Tuesday’s pattern, before buyers stepped in as news of Trump pausing “Project Freedom” amid deal progress with Iran triggered a sharp recovery in sentiment through the mid-morning session.

Gainers & Losers

Among the top Nifty gainers in Wednesday’s morning trade, IndiGo led with its LTP at ₹4,374.20 against a previous close of ₹4,238.40, up 3.2%, followed by Trent rising to ₹4,240 from ₹4,135.40, up 2.53%, Bajaj Auto climbing to ₹10,266 from ₹10,046, up 2.19%, Asian Paints advancing to ₹2,477.70 from ₹2,430, up 1.96%, and M&M gaining to ₹3,270.30 from ₹3,210.80, up 1.85%. On the losing side, L&T was the top drag, falling to ₹3,943.90 from ₹4,054.50, down 2.73%, followed by ONGC slipping to ₹285.55 from ₹289.95, down 1.52%, Titan declining to ₹4,318.30 from ₹4,373.60, down 1.26%, Power Grid easing to ₹315.60 from ₹319.45, down 1.21%, and HUL retreating to ₹2,303.50 from ₹2,327.40, down 1.03%.

Broader & Sectoral Markets

Broader markets were outperforming the benchmarks convincingly in Wednesday’s morning session, with the Nifty Midcap Select leading gains at 1.62%, followed by the Nifty Midcap 50 rising 1.45% and the Nifty Smallcap 50 gaining 1.17%, reflecting broad-based risk appetite beyond large caps. On the sectoral front, Nifty Pharma was the standout gainer, surging 1.93%, followed by Nifty Healthcare rising 1.42%, Nifty Bank adding 0.86% and Nifty Financial Services climbing 0.95%, while Nifty FMCG was the sole notable laggard, slipping 0.53%.

Iran War

US President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday he would briefly pause the military escort operation through the Strait of Hormuz, citing “great progress” toward a comprehensive peace agreement with Iran, in a development that immediately calmed energy markets and lifted global risk appetite. The Strait has been virtually shut since the conflict began in February, blocking approximately 20% of world oil supplies and igniting a global energy crisis that has been the dominant market narrative for weeks. There was no immediate reaction from Tehran, though the White House indicated the blockade would remain in force while negotiations proceeded.

Oil Prices

Oil prices fell for a second consecutive session on Wednesday, with Brent crude futures declining $1.52 or 1.38% to $108.35 per barrel and WTI falling $1.50 or 1.47% to $100.77 extending Tuesday’s sharp 4% and 3.9% declines respectively as markets priced in the possibility of bottled-up Middle East oil supply resuming flows if a peace deal materialises.

Asian Markets

Asian markets were broadly in the green on Wednesday, cheering the Iran peace optimism and oil price retreat. Australia’s ASX All Ordinaries rose 1.27%, Shanghai’s composite gained 1.25%, Indonesia’s JSX added 1.22% and Thailand’s SET jumped 1.20%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.95%, the Philippines’ PSEI gained 0.85%, Malaysia’s KLCI added 0.61% and Pakistan’s KSE 100 rose 0.48%, reflecting near-universal regional relief at the diplomatic progress.

Wall Street

Wall Street closed firmly higher on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones rising 0.73% to 49,298, the Nasdaq gaining 1.03% to 25,326 and the S&P 500 climbing 0.81% to 7,259, as Trump’s pause announcement triggered a broad risk-on rally in US equities.

Rupee

The Indian rupee remained under pressure at its last update, having slid to a record low of 95.4325 per dollar on Tuesday before the Reserve Bank of India’s intervention through state-run banks helped it pare losses to end at 95.28 still near all-time lows as oil-sensitive Asian currencies including the Indonesian rupiah and Philippine peso remained under strain.

Source:

• bseindia.com
• Nseindia.com
• https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/middle-east-truce-doubt-us-iran-fight-control-strait-hormuz-2026-05-05/
• https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-little-changed-ceasefire-holds-us-crude-stocks-fall-2026-05-05/