Nifty IT surges over 3% as Infosys, HCL Tech shine: Three reasons why IT stocks are rallying today

IT stocks rallied on Thursday, October 23, supported by several positive developments. Nifty IT jumped 3.10% to an intraday high of 36,394.45 as the equity market traded higher.

At the time of writing, the Nifty IT index was trading at 36,382.25, up 3.07%, with all constituent stocks showing gains.

Infosys led the gains on the index, climbing 4.52%, followed by HCL Technologies (3.34%), Mphasis (2.82%), Tata Consultancy Services (2.67%), and Persistent Systems (2.58%).

Tech Mahindra (2.48%), Wipro (2.28%), Coforge (1.75%), LTIMindtree (1.46%) and Oracle Financial Services Software (0.41%) were also trading higher.

Over the past month, the Nifty IT index has risen 3.3%, but it has fallen 1.5% over the last three months. Over a six-month period, the index has gained 2.8%.

Here are the key factors behind the rally

India and the United States are nearing the conclusion of a long-pending bilateral trade agreement that could lower tariffs on Indian exports to around 15–16% from the current effective rate of about 50%, Mint reported on Wednesday, citing three people familiar with the matter.

According to the report, the deal, which could be announced at the ASEAN Summit later this month, may also see India gradually reducing imports of Russian oil in exchange for better trade terms with Washington.

India’s purchases of Russian crude had prompted an additional 25% levy on Indian exports, on top of a reciprocal 25% tariff imposed by the US earlier this year.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured him India would stop buying oil from Russia.

A fresh guideline issued by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) earlier this week said that the $100,000 fee imposed by the Trump administration on new H-1B visa petitions will not apply to applicants seeking a "change of status" or "extension of stay".

The guidelines clarified the exemptions to President Donald Trump's September 19 proclamation, 'Restriction on entry of certain non-immigrant workers', which will raise the fee for new H1-B visas to a steep $100,000 (approx. ₹88 lakhs).

"The Proclamation does not apply to any previously issued and currently valid H-1B visas or any petitions submitted prior to 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on September 21, 2025," the USCIS said.

It added that the proclamation also does not prevent any current H1-B holder from travelling in and out of the US.

The USCIS clarified that the fee does not apply to "change of status" cases where individuals switch categories without leaving the country, such as moving from F-1 student status to H-1B status.

Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to the USCIS. Companies pay to sponsor H-1B applicants.

Shares of Infosys rallied nearly 5% to touch an intraday high of ₹1,543.90 apiece on Thursday, as the IT services firm’s promoters and promoter group, including Nandan M Nilekani and Sudha Murty, have decided not to participate in the company's ₹18,000 crore share buyback.

"...the Promoter and Promoter Group of the Company have expressed their intention of not participating in the Buyback vide their letters dated September 14, 2025, September 16, 2025, September 17, 2025, September 18, 2025, and September 19, 2025," the company said in a regulatory filing.

The promoters collectively hold 13.05% of the company's equity as of the buyback announcement date.

"Pursuant to the proposed buyback and depending on the response to the buyback, the voting rights of the promoters and promoter group in the company, which constitute 13.05% as of the date of the public announcement, may change," Infosys added.

Infosys promoters include company co-founder N R Narayana Murthy's wife, Sudha N Murty; daughter, Akshata Murty; and son, Rohan Murty. It also includes company co-founder Nandan Nilekani, his wife Rohini Nilekani, and children Nihar and Janhavi Nilekani. Other co-founders and their families are also promoters of the company.