opened marginally lower on Friday morning, with the starting at 24,759.55 from its previous close of 24,836.30 and trading at 24,787.60, down 48.70 points or 0.20 per cent, at 10.25 am.
The opened at 80,684.14 against its previous close of 80,983.31 and was at 80,866.04, lower by 117.27 points or 0.14 per cent, as the subdued opening came despite positive momentum from the outcome that kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.5 per cent while upgrading growth projections.
“The central bank held the repo rate steady at 5.5 per cent but struck a growth-supportive tone by trimming its inflation forecast for FY26 to 2.6 per cent from 3.1 per cent and upgrading GDP growth outlook to 6.8 per cent from 6.5 per cent,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money. “This combination of stable rates, easing inflation, and higher growth expectations has boosted confidence across sectors.”
Metal stocks emerged as top gainers in early trade, with Tata Steel surging 3.32 per cent to ₹173.07 and Hindalco advancing 2.14 per cent to ₹782.35.
The banking sector also witnessed strong buying interest, with Kotak Mahindra Bank rising 1.76 per cent to ₹2,099.60 and Axis Bank climbing 1.52 per cent to ₹1,177.10. Bharat Electronics Limited gained 1.65 per cent to trade at ₹413.20.
“Private banks and financials are expected to spearhead the next leg of the rally, as a host of new credit-enhancing measures unveiled alongside the RBI policy are expected to open up new growth avenues and boost credit growth,” Ponmudi added.
On the losing side, Max Healthcare led the decliners, falling 2.67 per cent to ₹1,083.50, followed by Bajaj Finserv and Eicher Motors, both down 1.86 per cent to ₹1,969.60 and ₹6,891.00 respectively. Shriram Finance declined 1.77 per cent to ₹637.25, while Coal India dropped 1.56 per cent to ₹382.45.
Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities Ltd, noted that “Nifty is now eyeing the 25,000 mark as the next hurdle, supported by positive global cues, DII inflows, and a sharp drop in India VIX to 10.29 levels.”
On the institutional flows front, Foreign Institutional Investors sold equities worth ₹1,605 crore on October 1, while Domestic Institutional Investors bought equities worth ₹2,916 crore on the same day.
Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, said “The positive impact of the central bank’s bold initiatives to boost credit growth in the economy has the potential to sustain the momentum in the market, particularly in Bank Nifty.” He added that “the fairly valued largecap banks are attractive buys from a medium to long-term perspective.”
In the commodities market, crude oil prices declined 2.79 per cent to $60.63, marking a four-month low. Rahul Kalantri, VP Commodities at Mehta Equities Ltd, noted that “prices hit 4-month high at the start of the week and then again slipped to 4-month lows on the prospects of larger output hikes by OPEC+ in its forthcoming meeting on 5th October.”
Gold prices witnessed profit-taking from record highs, with Darshan Desai, CEO of Aspect Bullion & Refinery, observing that “gold prices saw mild profit-taking on Thursday, following a sharp rally of nearly 50 per cent so far this year.” He added that “at these elevated levels, investors might consider booking partial profits, with an eye toward re-entering on any price correction.”
Technical analysts pointed to key support and resistance levels for the session. Amruta Shinde, Technical & Derivative Analyst at Choice Equity Broking Private Limited, stated that “the Nifty 50 opened on a strong footing in the previous session and maintained bullish momentum.” She noted that “a sustained move above 24,900 could pave the way for a rally toward 25,000 and 25,150.”
Ponmudi observed that “while the Nifty opened lower than the previous session’s close, it managed to hold just above its 100-day EMA at 24,745 — a key balance line for the market.” He cautioned that “since it’s the last day of the week, profit booking cannot be ruled out, especially by short-term traders in sectors and stocks that have demonstrated strong momentum over the past few days.”