Stock Market Today: Indian equity benchmarks, Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex, opened flat in trade on Wednesday as Middle East tensions and the US-Iran war continued to add uncertainty to global markets. While Nifty50 was above 24,250, BSE Sensex was near 78,300. At 9:18 am Nifty 50 was trading 23 points up 0.096% at 24,284.90. BSE Sensex was up 76 points or 0.097% at 78,281.72.Stock market experts expect the benchmarks to move into a consolidation phase in the near term. Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd, says, “There are some important market trends that investors should analyze right now and try to understand. One, the FII vs DII game is back to the pattern of the past one year, with the pattern of sustained selling by FIIs being more matched by sustained buying by DIIs. Given the continued indifference of FIIs towards India and the sustained inflows into Indian equity mutual funds, this game is likely to continue in the near term. Two, despite market weakness, some segments like pharmaceuticals and domestic consumption sectors like telecommunications and defense are showing resilience. Sustained FII selling has made large banking stocks, which form the largest segment of FII AUM, attractive. These stocks have the potential to reward investors who buy and hold them for at least two years. Patience is the key here. The risk sentiment in the market will improve with Brent crude falling below $88.Asian stock markets opened about 0.8 percent higher and optimism over the artificial intelligence sector also lifted sentiment, with Oracle Corp shares rising 8 percent in after-hours trading after stronger-than-expected revenue results.In the United States, stocks gave up early gains on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 slipping into negative territory. Investors weighed on Iran against diminishing expectations of a quick end to the US-Israeli war as renewed military threats and ongoing concerns about a potential economic recession weighed on Iran.Mixed movements were seen in the commodity markets. Gold prices rose on Wednesday as falling oil prices eased inflation concerns. Investors are also awaiting a series of US economic indicators due later this week for signals on the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook.Oil prices fluctuated on Wednesday after the Wall Street Journal reported that the International Energy Agency had proposed the largest release of oil reserves in its history to counter supply disruptions arising from the war involving Iran.Foreign portfolio investors were net sellers of equities worth Rs 4,673 crore on Tuesday. Whereas domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 6,333 crore.(Disclaimer: The recommendations and views given by experts on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)