Barometers nudge higher in early trade; breadth strong

The domestic equity benchmarks traded with minor gains in the early trade. The Nifty traded near the 25,500 level. PSU bank, IT and healthcare shares advanced, while realty, metal and consumer durables stocks declined.

At 09:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 29.73 points or 0.05% to 82,305.80. The Nifty 50 index gained 14.70 points or 0.05% to 25,499.90.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index added 0.18% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.05%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1,828 shares rose and 1,037 shares fell. A total of 177 shares were unchanged.

 

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 2,991.64 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 5,118.57 crore in the Indian equity market on 24 February 2026, provisional data showed.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Reliance Industries rose 0.03%. The company said that its step-down wholly owned subsidiary, Reliance Enterprise Intelligence (REIL), has allotted 59.66 crore equity shares worth Rs 596.6 crore to Reliance Intelligence, a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, and 25.65 crore equity shares worth Rs 256.6 crore to Facebook Overseas Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Meta Platforms, Inc.

Rail Vikas Nigam added 0.66%. The company announced that the company has received an LOA from the National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) for the development of a township in Kirandul, Chhattisgarh. The project cost is Rs 371.69 crore.

KFin Technologies shed 0.48%. The company said that MFC Technologies, the joint venture between Computer Age Management Services (CAMS) and KFin Technologies, announced key leadership appointments as MF Central transitions into a professionally governed stand-alone entity serving Indias mutual fund ecosystem.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper declined 0.12% to 6.677 compared with previous session close of 6.699.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.8475 compared with its close of 90.9100 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement lost 0.30% to Rs 160,656.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.09% to 97.54.

The United States 10-year bond yield shed 0.15% to 4.043.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for April 2026 settlement gained 13 cents or 0.18% to $70.82 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Asia markets rose on Thursday, tracking Wall Street gains as strong earnings from Nvidia and Oracle lifted investor sentiment.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose 1.1%, to hit an all-time high of 59,199.31, extending its winning streak of record highs to a third straight session. The broader Topix added 1.45%, also scaling a new peak.

On Wednesday, the Japanese government tapped Ayano Sato of Aoyama Gakuin University and Toichiro Asada of Chuo University as central bank board members, both dovish in their policy stance which aligns with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichis approach as well.

The two will succeed outgoing central bank board members Asahi Noguchi and Junko Nakagawa, whose terms expire at the end of March and in June, respectively.

Japanese equities have scaled multiple record highs recently, buoyed by the so-called "Takaichi trade, as investors bet that the prime ministers growth-oriented policies will lift stocks while pressuring the yen through looser monetary policy and increased fiscal spending.

Meanwhile, South Koreas central bank stood pat on interest rates on Thursday and signalled policy would stay unchanged for the next six months as a chip boom in exports and steady inflation allow policymakers more time to assess financial stability risks.

The Bank of Koreas seven-member monetary policy board voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.50%. The central bank raised this years growth forecast to 2.0% from 1.8% previously.

Overnight in the U.S., equities rose, supported by Nvidia and Oracle, as stocks built on the gains from the prior trading day.

The S&P 500 added 0.81% to close at 6,946.13, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.26% to 23,152.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 307.65 points, or 0.63%, to settle at 49,482.15.

Nvidia posted fiscal fourth-quarter results that topped widely reported expectations, fueled by a 75% surge in revenue from its core data center segment. Shares gained as much as 2% in extended trading following the release.

The company reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.62, beating the $1.53 forecast that was widely reported in the media. Revenue totaled $68.13 billion, above widely reported estimates of $66.21 billion.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News