Stock market today: Nifty50 opens above 26,150; BSE Sensex up around 100 points
Stock market today: Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, the Indian equity benchmark indices, opened in green on Friday. While Nifty50 was above 261,50, BSE Sensex was up around 100 points. At 9:16 AM, Nifty50 was trading at 26,172.90, up 26 points or 0.10%. BSE Sensex was at 85,282.91, up 94 points or 0.11%.Indian markets are set to take cues from a combination of corporate earnings for the third quarter and global developments in the coming sessions, with analysts pointing to December-quarter results, Union Budget expectations and overseas factors such as progress on an India-US trade deal and possible US Federal Reserve actions as key influences. Earnings growth is expected to remain the primary driver of market direction through 2026.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited says, “The impressive 25.8 % YoY increase in passenger vehicles sales in December bodes well for the auto industry. More importantly, this data confirms the growth momentum in the economy. It has to be watched whether this growth sustains, albeit at a slower pace, going forward. It is hugely important that the growth momentum in the economy sustains, because that alone can ensure the much needed earnings growth that the market needs to remain resilient and gradually move up.” “The positive news about the auto industry is largely in the price. A sector that lagged last year was the consumer durables industry, which has the potential to catch up, going forward. The beneficial impact of the interest rate cuts and GST cuts are yet to reflect in the demand for consumer durables. In the short-term, this is one segment that has good prospects.”Global risk sentiment was upbeat at the start of the New Year, with US equity index futures trading higher, signalling a positive opening for equities. Gains were also seen across precious metals, with gold and silver advancing in early trade.Gold edged up on Friday after touching a two-week low in the previous session, while silver and other precious metals recovered part of the losses recorded over the past week. Despite the recent pullback, the metals had logged historic gains over the course of 2025.On the institutional front, foreign portfolio investors continued to pare their exposure to Indian equities, selling shares worth Rs 3,268 crore on Wednesday. Domestic institutional investors, however, provided support to the market, purchasing equities worth Rs 1,526 crore during the session.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)
