Indian equity markets extended a two‑week rally with the Nifty 50 climbing 2.7 percent for the week ending October 16, marking the strongest weekly gain since April. The surge was anchored by robust buying in information‑technology (IT) shares, a modest appreciation of the rupee, and continued inflows from domestic institutional investors, despite higher crude oil prices and persistent selling by foreign investors.
Broad‑Based Gains Across Major Indices
The BSE Sensex rose 2,256.94 points, or 3.11 percent, to finish the week at 74,729.27. The Nifty 50 added 625.7 points, reaching 23,146.15. Mid‑cap stocks also posted modest gains, with the Nifty Midcap 100 up 0.6 percent, led by a mix of technology, energy and consumer names such as Tata Elxsi, KPIT Technologies, Suzlon Energy, Waaree Energies, UPL, Havells India, Hero MotoCorp, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Prestige Estates Projects. By contrast, a handful of stocks, including Yes Bank, ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company, Fortis Healthcare, Exide Industries, GE Vernova T&D India, LIC Housing Finance and Hitachi Energy India, lagged behind the broader market.
The Nifty Smallcap 100 finished the week largely flat, with gains in several constituents offset by losses in others. Notable small‑cap winners included HBL Engineering, Zensar Technologies, Syngene International, Aditya Birla Real Estate, Aarti Industries, Tata Chemicals, Bandhan Bank, Anand Rathi Wealth, Brainbees Solutions, KFin Technologies, Cohance Lifesciences, BLS International Services, Firstsource Solutions and Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals, which advanced between 5 and 16 percent. Conversely, stocks such as Anant Raj, RBL Bank, Physicswallah, Sai Life Sciences, Reliance Power and Neuland Laboratories fell between 5 and 10 percent.
Sectoral Leaders and Laggards
IT stocks were the clear front‑runners, with the Nifty IT index surging 11.7 percent – the biggest weekly rise for the sector in 18 years – as companies reported better‑than‑expected second‑quarter earnings. Media shares jumped more than 6 percent, while the auto index added 3 percent. Real estate and defence sectors also posted solid gains of 2.7 percent and 2.2 percent respectively. In contrast, the healthcare index slipped 1 percent, and both pharma and fast‑moving consumer goods (FMCG) indices fell, by 0.7 percent and 0.55 percent respectively.
Within the IT rally, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) emerged as the top contributor to market‑value gains, followed closely by Bharti Airtel, Infosys and Reliance Industries. The breadth of the rally was tempered by wealth‑eroding performances from Larsen & Toubro, InterGlobe Aviation and ITC, which together pulled down overall market capitalisation despite the net increase.
Currency, Capital Flows and Market Capitalisation
The Indian rupee broke a two‑week losing streak, appreciating 178 paise to close at 94.95 per U.S. dollar on October 16, compared with 96.73 on October 9. During the week the currency traded in a narrow band of 94.67 to 95.99 against the dollar, providing a modest tailwind for equity investors.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) extended their selling run to an eighth consecutive week, disposing of equities worth Rs 8,990.50 crore. In contrast, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) acted as a counter‑balance, buying equities valued at Rs 7,812.81 crore over the same period. The net effect was a rise in the market capitalisation of BSE‑listed companies by more than Rs 7 lakh crore during the week.
Overall, the market’s performance underscores the resilience of Indian equities in the face of external pressures such as elevated oil prices. Strong earnings from the IT sector, a firmer rupee and continued domestic institutional support helped offset foreign outflows, delivering the most robust weekly rally since the spring months.
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