While South Korea’s KOSPI plunged 11 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei fell nearly 4 per cent amid a global semiconductor sell-off on Tuesday, Indian markets shrugged off the turbulence and ended almost flat, with homegrown IT stocks surging on the back of strong earnings.The Nifty 50 closed at 23,985, down just 0.04 per cent, on what was also a monthly F&O expiry day, a session typically marked by choppiness. Declines outnumbered advances by nearly 2:1, yet the index held its ground.“Asian chip stocks told a different story. South Korean names like SK Hynix fell sharply on rising concerns about Chinese semiconductor competition... Indian IT services and Asian chip manufacturing are not the same trade. One is under pressure. The other is proving its value,” said Sarvam Goel, Founder, Pocketful.The standout story of the session was the Nifty IT index, which rallied 3.3 per cent. Coforge led the charge, jumping 10 per cent after reporting 33 per cent year-on-year revenue growth in dollar terms, with 86 per cent of revenues now coming from AI-led engineering, data and cloud services. Its 12-month executable order book stood at $2.23 billion. The results triggered a broad re-rating of the IT sector, which has now gained nearly 16 per cent from its recent lows.On the losing side, Hindustan Unilever tumbled 7 per cent after reporting weaker-than-expected earnings, profits dipped despite 10 per cent revenue growth, pointing to margin pressure. Varun Beverages also fell 7 per cent as first-quarter volume growth missed consensus estimates. FMCG and energy stocks broadly remained under pressure.Easing geopolitical tensions in West Asia provided some cushion to sentiment. US President Donald Trump signalled progress in Oman-mediated talks with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz, pushing Brent crude lower, quotes varied between $80 and $86 per barrel across sources, reflecting intraday volatility, but the direction was clearly downward. Domestic crude futures fell over 2.5 per cent to below ₹7,800.The rupee strengthened for a third consecutive session, with the spot USD/INR pair slipping to around ₹95.78, a one-week low, aided by softer crude prices and steady dollar supply from banks. Immediate support for the pair lies in the ₹95.40–95.60 range, with ₹96.15 as the key overhead hurdle.In commodities, gold slipped to $4,030 per ounce and silver to $57, as the dollar climbed to a one-month high of 101.57 ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy decision on Wednesday. CME FedWatch data put the probability of a 25-basis-point July rate hike at 34 per cent, with September odds near 80 per cent.Looking ahead, markets will track the Fed and Bank of Japan policy outcomes closely this week. On the earnings front, investors will watch results from Asian Paints, Eicher Motors, Dabur India, Adani Enterprises, and Colgate-Palmolive, among others. “Given the mixed global backdrop... we continue to advocate a selective, stock-specific approach, preferring auto and pharma,” said Ajit Mishra, SVP Research, Religare Broking.Published on July 28, 2026