NIFTY50 defends 23,000, SENSEX jumps 325 points; NIFTY IT index top sectoral gainer

Indian equity benchmarks ended higher on Friday, recovering after witnessing intense selling pressure in previous sessions, as traders opted to buy stocks at lower levels. Gains were primarily led by IT, metal and pharma stocks. Markets made an optimistic start, as crude oil prices eased over the Israeli PM's comments, suggesting Israel would refrain from further strikes on Iranian oil fields following a request for restraint from US President Donald Trump.

However, gains were limited as exchange data showed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained sellers, offloading equities worth over ₹7,558 crore on March 19.

European equity markets traded in the red amid Middle East conflicts and rising oil prices. Asian markets ended mostly in red, as investors remained cautious about the outlook for interest rate cuts amid inflation worries driven by rising oil prices.

The BSE Sensex ended at 74532.96, up by 325.72 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 74385.04 and 75286.39. 23 stocks were advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The top-gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 2.08%, TECK up by 1.74%, Healthcare up by 1.45%, Metal up by 1.41% and Energy up by 1.03%, while Realty down by 0.92% was the only losing index on the BSE.

The top gainers on the SENSEX were Tata Steel up by 3.23%, Tech Mahindra up by 3.01%, Infosys up by 2.78%, Trent up by 2.60% and Reliance Industries up by 2.11%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 2.41%, Bharat Electronics down by 1.10%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.57%, Interglobe Aviation down by 0.22% and Bajaj Finance down by 0.16% were the top losers.

The NIFTY50 ended at 23114.50, up by 112.35 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 23067.60 and 23345.15. 35 stocks were advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were JSW Steel up by 3.42%, Tech Mahindra up by 3.30%, Tata Steel up by 3.29%, Coal India up by 3.07% and Infosys up by 2.88%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 2.54%, HDFC Bank down by 2.22%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 1.55%, ONGC down by 1.37%, and Shriram Finance down by 1.18% were the top losers.

European markets were trading lower; the UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 38.98 points or 0.39% to 10,024.52, France’s CAC fell 22.87 points or 0.29% to 7,785.00, and Germany’s DAX lost 57.56 points or 0.25% to 22,782.00.

Asian markets settled mostly lower in thin trade on Friday, with stock markets in Japan, Indonesia, and Malaysia closed for a holiday.

Sentiments were muted as worries about inflation, stemming from soaring oil prices, left investors pessimistic about the potential for future interest rate cuts. Further, a cautious undertone prevailed as strikes targeting infrastructure in Iran, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia stoked concerns regarding a prolonged economic impact from the war.