Indian Stock Market Opens Higher Despite Weak Global Cues
The Indian stock market opened higher on Friday after three consecutive sessions of losses, supported by buying in information technology stocks. Shares of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and HCL Technologies advanced in early trade, while Reliance Industries and Bharti Airtel also recorded gains.
Despite the rise in benchmark indices, the broader market remained under pressure. Initial market data showed that declining stocks outnumbered advancing stocks, indicating that buying activity was concentrated in select large-cap companies, particularly in the IT sector.
The BSE Sensex opened 434.76 points, or 0.59%, higher at 73,684.15 on Friday. The National Stock Exchange's Nifty 50 gained 75.70 points, or 0.33%, to reach 22,763.35 in early trade.
At the opening, 848 stocks advanced, while 971 declined. Another 176 stocks remained unchanged. The figures indicated that the broader market trend was not uniformly positive despite gains in the benchmark indices.
Domestic buying supported the market's initial performance despite weak global cues. Trading trends across sectors and individual stocks, along with global market signals, remained relevant to the market's direction during the session.
The IT sector was among the key contributors to the market's early gains. The Nifty IT index rose 2.38% to 32,846.05, supported by buying in major technology stocks.
However, several other sectoral indices traded lower. The Nifty Metal index declined 1.62%, the Nifty Realty index fell 1.42%, the Nifty Media index dropped 1.21%, and the Nifty Consumer Durables index slipped 1.12%.
The Nifty PSU Bank index was down 1.05%, the Nifty Auto index declined 0.86%, and the Nifty Bank index fell 0.45%. The Nifty Oil and Gas index lost 0.33%, while the Nifty FMCG index declined 0.18%.
Among major stocks, Tata Consultancy Services recorded the largest gain in early trade, rising 3.77% to Rs 2,601.30. Infosys advanced 2.64% to Rs 1,183.80, while HCL Technologies gained 2.03% to Rs 1,450.60.
Reliance Industries rose 1.09%, Bharti Airtel gained 0.95%, and Tech Mahindra advanced 0.88%. Dr. Reddy's Laboratories traded 0.77% higher, while Larsen & Toubro (L&T) gained 0.21%.
Gains in these stocks supported the early advance in the benchmark indices.
Metal, auto and several other stocks came under selling pressure, contrasting with the gains in IT shares. Hindalco Industries declined 1.76%, while Tata Steel fell 1.38%. Adani Enterprises was down 1.10%.
Titan Company declined 1.08%, Max Healthcare fell 1.02%, Mahindra & Mahindra dropped 0.98%, and HDFC Life Insurance Company lost 0.94%.
