Benchmarks gain for third day on positive global cues; Nifty closes at 24,271

Key benchmark indices extended gains for a third consecutive session on Friday, supported by positive global cues. Weaker-than-expected US jobs data strengthened expectations of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut at its upcoming policy meeting. The Nifty closed at 24,270.85, led by gains in IT, healthcare and metal stocks. However, profit booking in the second half trimmed intraday gains, while broader markets lagged the benchmark indices.

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 261.79 points or 0.34% to 77,763.91. The Nifty 50 index jumped 95.15 points or 0.39% to 24,270.85. In the three consecutive trading sessions, the Sensex rallied 1.68% while the Nifty jumped 1.69%.

Bharti Airtel (up 1.81%), ICICI Bank (up 0.91%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.70%) boosted the Nifty today.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index fell 0.25% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.09%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,257 shares rose and 1,986 shares fell. A total of 202 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, tanked 3.98% to 11.80.

Economy:

India's services sector remained in expansion mode in June, although growth lost momentum amid challenging market conditions and softer client demand. The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index eased to 57.4 in June from 59.8 in May, marking the weakest pace of expansion in 17 months, while remaining well above the 50-point threshold that separates growth from contraction. Hiring activity was largely stagnant, business confidence weakened, and cost pressures eased, while new export orders grew at the fastest pace in three months.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper was up 0.04% to 6.716 as compared with previous close 6.713.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 95.1800 compared with its close of 95.3550 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 August 2026 settlement added 1.43% to Rs 147,850.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.13% to 100.48.

The United States 10-year bond yield was flat 0.00% to 4.478.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for September 2026 settlement rose 5 cents or 0.07% to $71.85 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Most European indices traded higher, while Asian indices ended in the green on Friday after weaker-than-expected US jobs data strengthened expectations of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut. Regional business activity data also pointed to continued economic expansion in June, supporting investor sentiment.

Japan's services sector returned to expansion in June after stalling in the previous month, although business confidence remained subdued amid concerns over Middle East tensions and rising cost pressures. The S&P Global Japan Services PMI rose to 52.2 in June from 50.0 in May.

China's services sector also remained in expansion territory, though growth moderated. The Caixin China General Services PMI, compiled by S&P Global, eased to 54.1 in June from 54.4 in May as growth in new business slowed, while overseas demand expanded at the fastest pace in 20 months.

US markets are closed on Friday in observance of Independence Day. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will resume on Monday, 6 July 2026.

Overnight, Wall Street ended mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.14% to a record closing high of 52,900.07 after the US economy added just 57,000 jobs in June, well below market expectations of 110,000 and May's downwardly revised 129,000. The weak payrolls data reinforced expectations of a Fed rate cut. The S&P 500 was little changed at 7,483.24, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.8% to 25,832.67 as semiconductor stocks remained under pressure.

Stocks in Spotlight:

PB Fintech fell 5.71% to Rs 1,586 on Friday as the stock witnessed heavy block deal activity. According to media reports, Macritchie Investments, a foreign direct investment (FDI) shareholder in PB Fintech, was looking to sell up to 1.19 crore shares, representing a 2.6% stake in the company, through block deals. The reports said the floor price for the transaction was fixed at Rs 1,604 per share, a discount of about 4.6% to Thursday's NSE closing price of Rs 1,682.10. The proposed deal size was estimated at around Rs 1,908.80 crore.

Bajaj Finance gained 1.28% after its new loans booked rose 20% year-on-year to 1.61 crore in Q1 FY27, compared with 1.35 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

Sumitomo Chemical India surged 13.55% after its Japanese parent, Sumitomo Chemical, announced that its wholly owned South Korean subsidiary, Dongwoo Fine-Chem, signed a joint venture agreement with Samsung Electro-Mechanics to enter the glass core substrate business for advanced semiconductor packages.

HCL Technologies jumped 5.74% after the company signed an agreement with a Europe headquartered, Fortune Global 50 Firm to transform their global digital workplace and enterprise networks using Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Bluspring Enterprises gained 3.89% after the company?s subsidiary, STEAG Energy Services (India) has secured a comprehensive operations and maintenance contract from Vedanta Aluminium Metal for a captive power plant. The contract covers a 1,215 MW (9x135 MW) captive power plant at VAML and has an estimated value of Rs 1,437.17 crore.

Union Bank of India fell 3.70% after the lender reported a provisional business update for the quarter ended 30 June 2026. The update showed a sequential decline in deposits and CASA balances despite healthy growth in advances.

Total gross advances rose 1.64% QoQ and 12.50% YoY to Rs 10,96,331 crore. Total deposits increased 3.50% YoY but declined 1.80% QoQ to Rs 12,83,365 crore. Domestic CASA deposits climbed 11.72% YoY but slipped 2.12% QoQ to Rs 4,50,220 crore.

Zydus Lifesciences gained 3.92% after the company signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Apollo Hospitals to introduce Shield, Multi-Cancer Detection (MCD) test available in India.

Marathon Nextgen Realty advanced 2.77% after the company announced that its subsidiary Sunset Spaces has executed a development agreement for the redevelopment of the society located at Versova, Mumbai.

PC Jeweller rallied 4.06% after the company reported an approximately 21% year-on-year increase in consolidated revenue for the quarter ended 30 June 2026.

Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services slipped 5.39% after the company estimated the overall disbursement at approximately Rs 15,560 crore, YoY growth of around 21% (excluding finance lease).

Initial Public Offer (IPO):

Knack Packaging received bids for 1,57,67,00,840 shares as against 1,89,64,018 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 16:40 IST on 03 July 2026. The issue was subscribed 83.14 times.

The issue opened for bidding on 1 July 2026 and it will close on 3 July 2026. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 161 and 170 per share.

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