MUMBAI — Indian equity benchmark indices snapped a three-day losing streak on Thursday, opening higher on the back of sharp buying in heavyweights across the banking and infrastructure sectors. Positive momentum in global equities and easing US bond yields provided additional tailwinds to investor sentiment.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 334.16 points, or 0.44 percent, to reach 76,904.51 in early trade. Simultaneously, the broader 50-share NSE Nifty advanced 95.45 points, scaling the 24,009.90 level.

The turnaround follows three straight sessions of losses triggered by escalating West Asian geopolitical tensions and elevated global crude oil prices. On Wednesday, the Sensex had closed 373.93 points lower at 76,570.35, while the Nifty slipped 141.35 points to settle at 23,914.45.

Banking Heavyweights Drive Gains

Leading the rally among the Sensex components were major banking and metal giants. Tata Steel, Adani Ports, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, HDFC Bank, Power Grid, Larsen & Toubro, Bharti Airtel, and UltraTech Cement posted noticeable gains in early trade.

On the flip side, major IT and consumer counters faced profit-taking. Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Infosys, Tata TCS, Bajaj Finance, Titan, IndiGo, Sun Pharmaceuticals, and ITC were among the top market laggards.

Institutional Support and Deposit Inflows Support Sentiment

Market analysts pointed to multiple macro triggers bolstering market sentiment, including easing US Treasury yields and record foreign-currency deposit inflows mobilized under special Reserve Bank of India (RBI) liquidity mechanisms.

Under the RBI’s concessional Foreign Currency Non-Resident (Bank) or FCNR(B) scheme, India mobilized a record $127.23 billion through foreign-currency deposits as of August 31. Analysts highlighted that the influx under the concessional swap arrangement, which totaled $136 billion overall, serves as a crucial cushion for forex liquidity and currency stabilization.

"The market sentiment is likely to look up following the slight easing of US bond yields," said Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Ltd. "A major positive from the currency perspective is the massive mobilization under the concessional swap facility. This scale of inflows under the FCNR(B) scheme exceeded consensus estimates and is expected to stabilize the rupee, imparting fresh confidence to Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs)."

Market participants also noted that Wednesday’s sharp decline was largely driven by retail and short-term traders rather than institutional selling. Exchange data showed that FIIs were net buyers on Wednesday, purchasing equities worth ₹6,688.37 crore, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) picked up shares worth ₹2,812.98 crore.

Global Cues and Crude Dynamics

In global markets, key Asian equity indices traded mostly higher. South Korea’s Kospi, Shanghai’s SSE Composite, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 registered gains, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng traded marginally lower. Over in Wall Street, US indices closed higher overnight.

In commodities, global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.17 percent to $95.47 a barrel, offering temporary breathing room to energy-importing economies like India.