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Mumbai: The Indian stock market began Friday's trading session on a positive note, breaking away from the sluggish trend seen over the previous sessions. Both benchmark indices opened in the green, supported by strong buying in IT and pharmaceutical stocks. Trent emerged as the biggest Nifty 50 gainer, while several metal, automobile and consumer-focused stocks remained under pressure.
The BSE Sensex opened 71.45 points higher, gaining 0.10% to reach 74,222.49. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty 50 advanced 22.15 points or 0.10%, to open at 22,958.90. Despite the positive opening, broader market sentiment remained mixed. Market breadth indicated that declining stocks outnumbered advancing shares.
At the opening, 1,086 stocks were trading higher, compared with 1,221 stocks in the red. Another 171 shares remained unchanged.
Information technology stocks provided significant support to the benchmarks. The Nifty IT index climbed 1.28% to 32,275, emerging as one of the strongest-performing sectoral indices. Pharmaceutical stocks also attracted buying interest, with the Nifty Pharma index rising 0.98%. The Nifty Healthcare index gained 0.84%, while the Nifty MidSmall Healthcare index advanced 0.48%.
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However, several other sectors faced selling pressure. The Nifty Consumer Durables index declined 1.79%, followed by Nifty Metal, which slipped 0.81%. Nifty Media fell 0.79%, Nifty FMCG lost 0.69%, and Nifty Auto dropped 0.52%.
Among individual stocks, Trent delivered the strongest performance in the Nifty 50 pack. The stock surged 5.25% to trade at ₹3,011.80 during early deals. IT heavyweights also witnessed healthy buying. Infosys gained 1.31%, TCS advanced 0.96%, HCL Technologies rose 0.92%, and Tech Mahindra added 0.90%. Sun Pharma climbed 1.87%, while IndiGo gained 1.47%, reflecting positive investor interest in selected heavyweight stocks.
On the losing side, Coal India declined 1.28%, while Shriram Finance and Tata Steel each slipped 1.12%. UltraTech Cement dropped 1.06%. Adani Enterprises and Adani Ports also traded lower, falling 0.69% and 0.79%, respectively.
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Although the Sensex and Nifty started Friday's session in positive territory, the higher number of declining stocks suggested that buying interest remained selective. Strong performances from IT and pharma shares supported market sentiment, while weakness in consumer durables, metals and automobile stocks limited broader gains. Investors will likely keep an eye on sectoral movements and heavyweight stocks for further direction during the trading session.
