Nifty ends above 23,650 as global cues, U.S.-China optimism lift markets

The headline equity indices ended with strong gains on Thursday, extending their rally for a second straight session amid strong global cues and optimism surrounding ongoing U.S.-China discussions. Steady corporate earnings and value buying in banking and telecom shares also supported sentiment.

The Nifty opened higher at 23,530.25 and briefly slipped into negative territory during late morning trade, hitting an intraday low of 23,426.55. However, strong buying in banking, pharma and metal shares pushed the index steadily higher through the afternoon session. The Nifty later touched an intraday high of 23,777.20 before ending near the day?s peak levels. Barring the Nifty IT index, all sectoral indices on the NSE ended in the green.

The S&P BSE Sensex surged 789.74 points or 1.06% to 75,398.72. The Nifty 50 index rose 277 points or 1.18% to 23,689.60. In two consecutive trading sessions, the Sensex jumped 1.13% while the Nifty 50 added 1.33%.

Bharti Airtel (up 5.32%), HDFC Bank (up 2.67%) and ICICI Bank (up 0.84%) boosted the indices today.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index climbed 0.95% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index jumped 0.18%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,107 shares rose and 2,076 shares fell. A total of 201 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, dropped 4.18% to 18.61.

Economy:

India's wholesale prices increased 8.30% year-on-year in April 2026, accelerating sharply from a 3.88% rise in March. This marked the fastest growth since October 2022, driven by a faster rise in manufacturing and food costs and a sharp increase in fuel prices due to the impact of the Middle East crisis.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee hovered at 95.7275 compared with its previous close of 95.6650. It hit a fresh record low of 95.9625 against the U.S. dollar today.

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.34% to 7.021 compared with the previous session close of 7.045.

MCX Gold futures for the 5 June 2026 settlement shed 0.03% to Rs 162,145.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.03% to 98.445.

The United States 10-year bond yield lost 0.27% to 4.462.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for July 2026 settlement lost 20 cents or 0.19% to $105.43 a barrel.

Global Markets:

The U.S. Dow Jones futures were up 363 points, indicating a positive opening for Wall Street later today.

European stocks advanced on Thursday as investors monitored developments from U.S. President Donald Trump?s visit to China.

Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded the first round of talks during their two-day summit. Chinese state media reported that discussions on trade were making progress, although Xi reportedly cautioned that disagreements over Taiwan could strain bilateral ties.

The UK economy expanded 0.6% in Q1 2026, in line with expectations and marking its strongest quarterly growth since Q1 2025. The previous quarter?s growth was revised to 0.2%. Growth was supported by stronger services activity, particularly in wholesale and retail trade, while manufacturing and construction also contributed positively. On an annual basis, the UK economy grew 1.1%, ahead of market expectations of 0.8%.

Asian stocks ended mixed as investors assessed the implications of the Trump-Xi meeting for global trade and U.S.-China relations.

Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday accompanied by several U.S. business leaders, including Elon Musk and Jensen Huang.

Shares of Samsung Electronics rose as much as 5.46%, recovering after the company lost nearly $66 billion in market value on Wednesday amid concerns over a labour dispute that could lead to one of the largest strikes in its history.

A labour union has threatened an 18-day strike beginning 21 May if its demands are not met. More than 41,000 workers are expected to participate in the walkout, which was first announced during a rally on 23 April.

South Korea?s Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol warned that a prolonged strike at Samsung could hurt the country?s exports, economic growth and financial markets.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 climbed to a fresh record high overnight as optimism around technology stocks outweighed concerns over elevated inflation.

The S&P 500 rose 0.58% to close at 7,444.25, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.2% to 26,402.34. Both indices touched fresh intraday and closing highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 67.36 points, or 0.14%, to end at 49,693.20.

U.S. wholesale inflation accelerated sharply in April. The producer price index rose 1.4% month-on-month, following an upwardly revised 0.7% increase in March, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This marked the biggest monthly rise since March 2022. On an annual basis, producer prices increased 6%, the highest level since December 2022.

Stocks in Spotlight:

IT stocks remained under pressure on Thursday amid concerns over AI-led disruption following OpenAI?s latest enterprise push. Weak global macroeconomic conditions and cautious enterprise spending also weighed on sentiment.

The Nifty IT index declined 1.99% to 27,360.35. The index has fallen 6.92% over the last four consecutive sessions and hit a 52-week low of 27,078 during the day.

Persistent Systems led the losses, tumbling 4.44%, followed by LTIMindtree, down 3.95%. Infosys declined 2.58%, while Tech Mahindra slipped 2.33%. HCL Technologies fell 1.69%, while Coforge declined 1.63%. Mphasis dropped 1.17%, and Tata Consultancy Services lost 1.01%. Oracle Financial Services Software slipped 0.14%, while Wipro bucked the trend and edged up 0.16%.

Bharti Airtel rose 5.32% after it reported a 10.47% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 7,325.1 crore for Q4 FY26, compared with Rs 6,630.4 crore in Q3 FY26. Revenue from operations increased 2.59% QoQ to Rs 55,383.2 crore in the March quarter from Rs 53,853.6 crore in the preceding quarter.

Oil India rose 2.11% after its standalone net profit jumped 12.44% to Rs 1,789.53 crore in Q4 FY26, compared with Rs 1,591.48 crore in Q4 FY25. PAT increased, supported by higher crude oil production (up 6%) and improved crude price realisation, which rose 5% to $77.89 per barrel from $74.46 per barrel in Q4 FY25. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) rallied 8% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 5,960.59 crore for the quarter ended 31 March 2026.

NLC India surged 14.01% to Rs 376.40 after the company?s consolidated net profit soared 189.12% to Rs 1393.46 crore on 31.45% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 5042.46 crore in Q4 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

CARE Ratings surged 7.99% after the company's consolidated profit after tax stood at Rs 52.83 crore in Q4 FY26, up 23.98% from Rs 42.61 crore in Q4 FY25 and rose 47.16% from Rs 35.90 crore in Q3 FY26. Revenue from operations increased 19.17% YoY to Rs 130.67 crore in Q4 FY26 from Rs 109.65 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue rose 16.54% sequentially from Rs 112.12 crore in Q3 FY26.

Kaynes Technology India plunged 20.07% after the company?s consolidated net profit declined 21.5% to Rs 91.22 crore despite a 26.22% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 1242.63 crore in Q4 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

MTAR Technologies surged 12.18% after the company announced purchase orders worth $238.76 million, equivalent to around Rs 2,278.96 crore.

Sagar Cements rose 3.90% after the company reported a turnaround performance in Q4 FY26, supported by higher cement volumes. Consolidated profit after tax stood at Rs 87.60 crore in Q4 FY26 compared with a loss of Rs 43.60 crore in Q4 FY25 and a loss of Rs 57.58 crore in Q3 FY26. Revenue from operations increased 19.59% YoY to Rs 786.96 crore in Q4 FY26 from Rs 658.04 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue rose 33.26% sequentially from Rs 590.54 crore in Q3 FY26.

Balaji Amines hit an upper limit of 20% after the company reported strong earnings growth for Q4 FY26. Consolidated profit after tax stood at Rs 63.21 crore in Q4 FY26, up 57.79% from Rs 40.06 crore in Q4 FY25 and surged 101.11% from Rs 31.43 crore in Q3 FY26. Revenue from operations increased 11.92% YoY to Rs 394.79 crore in Q4 FY26 from Rs 352.73 crore in the year-ago period. Revenue rose 19.16% sequentially from Rs 331.30 crore in Q3 FY26.

Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceuticals rose 0.45%. The company?s standalone net profit jumped 5.68% to Rs 274.94 crore on a 2.38% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 989.15 crore in Q4 FY26 over Q4 FY25.

DLF rose 1.58%. The company reported a marginal 1.06% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,268.56 crore for Q4 FY26, compared with Rs 1,282.20 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations fell sharply by 41.99% YoY to Rs 1,814.06 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2026.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News