closed marginally higher on Thursday after a sharp reversal from intraday peaks, as concerns over US sanctions on Russian oil majors overshadowed optimism surrounding a potential India-US trade agreement. The settled 130.06 points or 0.15 per cent higher at 84,556.40 after hitting an intraday high of 85,290.06, while the gained 22.80 points or 0.09 per cent to close at 25,891.40, retreating from its intraday peak of 26,104.
The market opened with a notable gap-up, with the Sensex jumping from its previous close of 84,426.34 to 85,154.15, while the Nifty surged from 25,868.60 to 26,057.20, buoyed by reports that India and the are nearing conclusion of a bilateral trade deal that could reduce tariffs on Indian exports from around 50 per cent to approximately 15-16 per cent.
However, the rally was short-lived as heavyweight declined sharply after announcing plans to recalibrate Russian oil imports following US sanctions on crude majors Rosneft PJSC and Lukoil PJSC, raising concerns about India’s dependence on discounted Russian crude.
“The market rose sharply in the first half on optimism over a potential India-US trade deal but surrendered most of its gains toward the close, weighed down by a sharp decline in Reliance Industries,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money. “The US sanctions on Russian oil majors also raised concerns that India may have to curtail purchases of discounted Russian crude and turn to costlier alternatives, potentially straining the import bill and inflation outlook.”
IT stocks emerged as the day’s star performers, with leading the charge with a 3.57 per cent surge to ₹1,525.00, followed by gaining 2.62 per cent to ₹1,524.90 and advancing 2.11 per cent to ₹3,070.00. The rally in IT counters came after Infosys promoters and promoter group chose to stay out of the ₹18,000-crore share buyback, signaling strong confidence in the company’s long-term growth prospects.
“IT stocks advanced as sentiment improved after Trump’s softer tone on H1B visas,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments Limited. The Nifty IT index surged 2.21 per cent, outperforming all other sectoral indices.
On the losing side, led decliners with a 2.99 per cent fall to ₹328.00, followed by dropping 2.09 per cent to ₹5,789.50, declining 1.86 per cent to ₹12,112.00, slipping 1.77 per cent to ₹6,894.00, and falling 1.64 per cent to ₹2,009.90.
Market breadth remained weak with 2,464 stocks declining against 1,809 advances on the BSE, while 221 stocks hit 52-week highs and 60 touched 52-week lows. The broader indices underperformed, with Nifty Midcap 100 down 0.06 per cent at 59,371.25 and Nifty Next 50 declining 0.12 per cent to 69,434.35. The Nifty Bank gained 0.12 per cent to close at 58,078.05 after marking a fresh all-time high of 58,577 during the session.
“The Nifty completely erased its morning gains during the day; nevertheless, the short-term trend remains strong,” said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities. “However, the short-term trend remains intact, with the potential to revisit higher levels around 26,200 in the next 10-15 days.”
The gained 0.19 paise to settle at 87.82, up 0.22 per cent, supported by optimism around a potential US tariff deal. “The sentiment improved on hopes of easing trade tensions, aiding the rupee’s short-term stability,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst at LKP Securities. “The rupee now holds strong support at 87.65, while resistance is seen near 88.10.”
Gold prices on recovered ₹1,800 to close at ₹1,23,680 per 10 grams after witnessing a sharp 5 per cent correction on October 22, driven by heavy profit booking and renewed optimism around US trade talks. Trivedi noted that “gold faces stiff resistance at ₹1,25,000-₹1,25,500 and support between ₹1,20,000-₹1,21,000.”
“FIIs are gradually returning to Indian markets, encouraged by expectations of earnings rebound in H2FY26 supported by festive demand, tax benefits and GST reductions,” said Nair. Foreign institutional investors have remained net buyers for the last five trading sessions, contributing a cumulative ₹2,262 crore towards Indian equities.
Looking ahead, market participants will track Friday’s key macroeconomic releases including US CPI data for September and Manufacturing and Services PMI of both India and US. “As long as the Nifty holds above 25,800 and Bank Nifty sustains above 58,000, the broader market bias remains positive,” said Ponmudi, adding that “some short-term consolidation or sideways movement is likely as traders await clarity from global data.”