Equity benchmarks opened on a cautious note on Wednesday morning as a combination of a divided US Federal Reserve, surging crude oil prices and fresh geopolitical tensions in the West Asia weighed on investor sentiment, even as domestic fundamentals remained broadly supportive.The Sensex, which closed at ₹77,654.60 on Tuesday, opened at ₹77,638.86 and was trading at ₹77,708.42, up ₹53.82 or 0.07 per cent, as of 9.23 AM. The Nifty 50, which settled at 24,250.20 in the previous session, opened at 24,249.55 and was at 24,275.15, up 24.95 points or 0.10 per cent, at the same time.The muted opening followed a sharp overnight sell-off on Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 2.2 per cent and the Nasdaq fell 1.7 per cent, after the Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady at 3.50 per cent–3.75 per cent but revealed a 9-3 split among policymakers, with three members voting for a 25 basis point hike. "The Fed's on the case," said incoming Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, without providing forward guidance on the rate path. The split decision has raised market expectations of a near-term rate hike, pushing the US 10-year bond yield up to 4.7 per cent.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, said: "...the decision was a 9-3 split decision with three members voting for a rate hike to control inflation. This split decision indicates that a rate hike may come soon. Consequently bond yields increased impacting equity markets which saw a 2 per cent sell off in S&P 500."Adding to global unease, US Central Command confirmed fresh strikes on Iran overnight. US President Donald Trump said: "...they took a shot, so it is our turn. We'll see if we get an agreement at some point but we are to hit them very hard." The escalation drove Brent crude briefly above the $90-per-barrel mark, a development with significant implications for India's fiscal health. The government has already flagged that persistently elevated oil prices could pressure the fiscal deficit.Despite these headwinds, Vijayakumar pointed to reasons for domestic resilience: "...FPIs turning buyers in India, so far in July, are turning favourable for Indian market...Indian economy continues to be resilient and this will provide fundamental support to the market." Foreign Institutional Investors were net buyers of approximately ₹2,982 crore in the previous session, while Domestic Institutional Investors added ₹998 crore in the cash market.On the Nifty 50, IT stocks led the gainers in early trade. Wipro rose 2.80 per cent to ₹188.75, Infosys gained 2.58 per cent to ₹1,185.40, Tech Mahindra advanced 1.68 per cent to ₹1,671.90, and HCL Technologies added 1.36 per cent to ₹1,362.60. In the energy space, ONGC climbed 1.46 per cent to ₹241.80.On the losing side, Asian Paints was the top decliner, falling 3.13 per cent to ₹2,672.00. Adani Ports dropped 2.74 per cent to ₹1,672.50, while Eternal slipped 1.54 per cent to ₹307.00. IndiGo fell 1.11 per cent to ₹5,218.00 and ICICI Bank edged lower by 0.82 per cent to ₹1,426.10.Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities, said: "...the indices not only crossed the 20-day Simple Moving Average resistance zone but also closed above it, which is a positive sign for the near-term trend." He added that a move below 24,100 on the Nifty or 77,300 on the Sensex would "weaken the current bullish structure."Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, noted: "...the 24,300–24,400 band remains the immediate hurdle, coinciding with the 200-day EMA, making it a technically significant resistance confluence."Globally, Asian markets were mixed. Japan's Nikkei recovered over 1 per cent after recent AI-sector-driven losses, while South Korea's Kospi posted modest gains following a historic selloff. Gold advanced as investors sought safety amid policy and geopolitical uncertainty.On the domestic corporate front, state-run IOC announced plans to invest in gas carrier vessels, while SAIL is moving ahead with plans to build a steel plant in Indonesia.Vikram Kasat, Head Advisory at PL Capital, set a first target of 24,500-plus for the Nifty, with strong support at 24,140.Published on July 30, 2026