The S&P BSE Sensex climbed 123.58 points, or 0.15%, to end at 81,548.73, while the NSE Nifty 50 advanced 32.40 points, or 0.13%, to finish at 25,005.50.
Top Movers
On the 30-stock Sensex, NTPC, Axis Bank, Power Grid, Bharti Airtel, Eternal and Sun Pharma advanced between 1% and 2%.
IT stocks broke a two-day rally. The IT index slipped 0.5% after climbing 5.5% earlier in the week, dragged lower by a 1.5% drop in Infosys ahead of a board meeting to consider a share buyback.
Mid-cap and small-cap stocks were flat.
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Exchange operator BSE and brokerage Angel One fell 4.6% and 5.2% after reports that the Securities and Exchange Board of India may move to phase out weekly derivatives contracts.The Nifty 50 and Sensex have gained 1.7% each over the past seven sessions, lifted by domestic tax cuts, expectations of a U.S. rate cut and improving sentiment around global trade negotiations.
Expert views
The Nifty50 index has closed above the critical threshold of 25,000, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, adding that the unexpected imposition of a 50% tariff on India by the U.S. initially dragged the main index down to 24,400.
“However, the index has been steadily recovering from this decline. This resurgence can be attributed to several factors like expectation of limited impact on the domestic economy, the Indian government’s robust strategic response to US long-term policies, and the announcement of significant domestic reforms, such as the GST, to mitigate trade-related repercussions. Recently, positive signals from the US to reinitiate trade discussions with India have further paved the way for the index to ascend into a new range, which was highly expected by the market,” said Nair.
The Nifty index breached the much-anticipated psychological mark of 25,000 and closed slightly above it, said Nilesh Jain, Head of Technical and Derivatives Research at Centrum Broking, adding that a short-covering move appears evident as Nifty crossed this key resistance level.
“The overall structure has turned positive, supported by bullish crossovers in momentum indicators and oscillators. Going forward, we expect the upward momentum to persist, with immediate targets at 25,200, followed by 25,400. On the downside, the support base continues to shift higher, with the 50-day moving average now placed near the 24,900 mark,” said Jain.
Global Markets
World equities stocks hovered near record highs on Thursday, while the dollar inched higher as investors looked ahead to the European Central Bank’s interest rate decision and fresh U.S. inflation figures.
Technology shares once again set the pace in Asia, driving indexes in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea to new peaks overnight. Europe opened steadily, with markets bracing for the ECB to keep its benchmark rate at 2% for a second consecutive meeting later in the day.
Attention is also fixed on U.S. consumer price data for August, due later. Economists surveyed by Reuters expect headline inflation to accelerate to 2.9% year-on-year, the sharpest rise since January, while core inflation is projected to hold at 3.1%.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei climbed 1.2% to a record high, led by gains in technology, energy and utilities companies. South Korea’s benchmark index added 0.9%.
Crude Impact
Oil prices were little changed on Thursday, as concerns about weakening U.S. demand and global oversupply were balanced by geopolitical tensions stemming from violence in the Middle East and Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Brent crude slipped 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $67.28 a barrel by 0911 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, fell 26 cents, or 0.4%, to $63.41.
Rupee vs Dollar
The Indian rupee fell sharply on Thursday, dropping 36 paise to close at a record low of 88.47 against the U.S. dollar (provisional), highlighting growing pressure from U.S. tariffs on Asia’s third-largest economy.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major peers, edged up 0.22% to 97.99.
(With inputs from agencies)
