Mumbai, July 26: Indian equity indices started positively on Friday, buoyed by favorable global signals. As of 9:43 a.m., the Sensex had surged by 329 points or 0.41%, reaching 80,373, while the Nifty was up by 118 points or 0.48% at 24,524. Broad market activity showed robust buying, with the Nifty midcap 100 index climbing 711 points or 1.25% to 57,453, and the Nifty smallcap 100 index rising by 74 points or 0.40% to 18,747.
Sector-wise, significant gains were observed in Metal, IT, PSU Bank, Pharma, Realty, Energy, and Infra sectors, while FMCG and private banks faced downward pressure. Among Sensex components, Bharti Airtel, JSW Steel, Wipro, Tata Steel, Infosys, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance, TCS, Asian Paints, and M&M led the gainers, whereas Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Nestle, and HUL were notable laggards.
Across Asia, markets in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Seoul, and Jakarta were trading positively, with Shanghai being the exception in the red zone. Brent crude traded at $82.54 per barrel, while WTI crude stood at $78.43 per barrel.
Market experts noted that India's current bull market has shown resilience in overcoming various concerns such as elections, budget issues, and corrections in the US market. The strategy of buying on dips has proven effective in sustaining the rally.
On July 25, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 2,605 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 2,431 crore, continuing recent trends in market participation.
