New Delhi [India], July 22 (ANI): Indian stock markets extended gains on Tuesday's opening session, following a strong close on Monday and buoyed by record highs in U.S. indices.

Investors remained optimistic despite ongoing foreign portfolio investor (FPI) selling, as banking stocks continued to support the market.

The Nifty 50 index opened at 25,166.65, gaining 75.95 points or 0.30 per cent, while the BSE Sensex began the day at 82,527.43, rising 327.09 points or 0.40 per cent.

Experts noted that investor sentiment has turned positive amid strong cues from the US, where both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit fresh highs.

Ajay Bagga, a banking and market expert, told ANI, 'India is seeing continued FPI selling but we saw banks doing the heavy lifting yesterday. Key supports have been defended and we see a better market going ahead. US markets registered new highs on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Asian markets have followed the lead. Japan, where the ruling party lost the Upper House majority, opened up despite the political and tariff uncertainty.'

On the National Stock Exchange, broader indices also showed strength. The Nifty 100 index rose by 0.26 per cent, Nifty 200 added 0.24 per cent, while Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 gained 0.11 per cent and 0.49 per cent, respectively.

Among the sectoral indices, the performance was mixed. Nifty Auto declined by 0.12 per cent, Nifty IT was down 0.02 per cent, and Nifty Pharma slipped 0.17 per cent.

On the positive side, Nifty FMCG rose by 0.06 per cent, Nifty Media gained 0.26 per cent, Nifty Metal advanced 0.31 per cent, and Nifty PSU Bank moved up by 0.04 per cent.

Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research at Axis Securities, said, 'The Nifty gained 122 points yesterday to finish the session at 25,091. Technically speaking, yesterday's candle formed a bullish harami pattern with a long lower shadow, which shows demand in the 24,700 - 24,900 area. Bulls need to break above 25,144 for more near-term relief, but it's a daily close above 25,340 that will tilt the bias in their favor. Asian cues and US index futures are supportive this morning, but with the August 1st tariff deadline approaching, investors should expect elevated bouts of volatility.'

On the corporate front, a number of key companies are scheduled to report their first quarter earnings for FY26 today. These include Indian Railway Finance Corporation, Dixon Technologies, JSW Infrastructure, Colgate Palmolive (India), One 97 Communications (Paytm), United Breweries, Dalmia Bharat, KEI Industries, Mahindra and Mahindra Financial Services, Shyam Metalics & Energy, CreditAccess Grameen, Kajaria Ceramics, and Zensar Technologies.

In other Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei was up by 0.18 per cent. However, other major indices remained under pressure. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was flat in red, Taiwan's weighted index declined by 0.33 per cent, South Korea's KOSPI dropped 0.73 per cent, and Singapore's Straits Times index was down by 0.25 per cent. (ANI)