The Indian stock market extended its winning streak for the seventh consecutive session on Friday, November 6, as benchmark indices recorded strong gains despite weakness across several global markets. The Sensex surged more than 1,700 points, while the Nifty 50 crossed the psychologically important 25,000 mark, supported by buying in banking, financial services and automobile stocks.
The BSE Sensex closed at 81,028.02, gaining 1,718.01 points or 2.17%. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced 493.75 points, or 2.01%, to settle at 25,030.35. Both benchmark indices ended at their respective session highs, reflecting strong buying interest towards the end of trading.
The latest rally extended the market’s upward momentum, with investors responding positively to sustained foreign institutional investment, easing crude oil prices, encouraging corporate earnings and improving sentiment around India’s economic outlook. The gains also came despite a sell-off in several international technology stocks amid concerns about the scale and sustainability of investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Banking and financial services stocks were among the biggest contributors to Friday’s gains. The Nifty Bank index climbed 1,312.35 points, or 2.27%, to close at 59,086.00. Buying in major private sector lenders helped lift the benchmark indices, with ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank recording strong advances.
The broader market sentiment also received support from continued foreign fund inflows. Foreign institutional investors purchased Indian equities worth ₹14,974.68 crore on Thursday, November 5, according to exchange data. Domestic institutional investors, meanwhile, were net sellers, offloading shares worth ₹10,444.54 crore during the same session.
The scale of foreign buying strengthened expectations that overseas investors were returning to Indian equities after a period of caution. Sustained inflows have helped support the recent rally and improved confidence among market participants.
Falling crude oil prices also provided relief to investors. Lower oil prices are generally positive for India because the country depends heavily on imported crude to meet its energy requirements. A decline in international oil prices can help ease pressure on the import bill, inflation and corporate operating costs.
Mahindra & Mahindra emerged as the biggest Nifty 50 gainer on Friday. Its shares climbed 5.11% to close at ₹3,287.20, as investors responded positively to the company’s growth prospects and performance in its automotive business.
ICICI Bank followed with a gain of 4.75%, ending at ₹1,571.20. HDFC Life Insurance Company advanced 3.95% to ₹565.30, while HDFC Bank rose 3.72%. Titan Company also featured among the leading gainers, adding 3.42%.
The gains in banking, insurance and automobile stocks reflected broad buying interest in several heavyweight companies. These stocks carry significant weight in benchmark indices, helping amplify the overall market advance.
However, a few stocks ended in the red despite the strong performance of the broader benchmarks. Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles declined 0.58% to ₹292, making it one of the biggest Nifty 50 losers. Eicher Motors fell 0.56% to ₹7,669.50, while Shriram Finance slipped 0.30% to ₹961.15. Grasim Industries also recorded a marginal decline of 0.02%.
The difference between the performance of leading stocks and the broader market indicated that the rally was not equally strong across all segments.
While large-cap stocks recorded significant gains, the broader market delivered a mixed performance. The Nifty Midcap 100 ended marginally lower by 14.25 points, or 0.02%, at 60,606.65. The Nifty Smallcap 100 declined 157.40 points, or 0.82%, to close at 18,975.05.
This indicated that investors were more selective in their buying, favouring established large-cap companies over several midcap and smallcap stocks.
Among midcap shares, YES Bank, Havells India, Kalyan Jewellers, Multi Commodity Exchange and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals were among the notable gainers. On the losing side, Astral, Apar Industries, Fortis Healthcare, Tube Investments of India and Supreme Industries recorded declines.
In the smallcap segment, Sai Life Sciences was among the leading gainers after reporting growth in its September-quarter earnings. Its consolidated net profit increased 17% year-on-year to ₹98.32 crore, while revenue from operations rose 23% to ₹659 crore.
Friday’s rally capped an exceptionally strong week for Indian equities. The Nifty 50 gained approximately 8.6% during the week, while the Sensex advanced around 8.8%. These were their strongest weekly gains since February 2021.
Financial stocks were among the biggest contributors to the weekly performance. The financial sector recorded substantial gains, while Reliance Industries also advanced following its quarterly earnings performance.
The rally came even as global technology stocks faced selling pressure over concerns about artificial intelligence-related spending and valuations. Indian equities appeared relatively resilient, supported by domestic economic factors, foreign fund inflows and easing concerns about crude oil prices.
The Indian rupee also strengthened, extending its winning streak for a sixth consecutive session. It settled at 93.91 against the US dollar, compared with its previous close of 94.47.
The market’s sharp advance lifted investor wealth, with the total market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies rising to approximately ₹503.10 lakh crore from ₹501.61 lakh crore in the previous session.
Investors will now watch whether the benchmarks can sustain their gains above key psychological levels. Corporate earnings, foreign institutional activity, crude oil movements and global market trends are expected to influence trading in the coming sessions.
The exchanges will also hold a special Muhurat trading session on Sunday, November 8, to mark Diwali Laxmi Pujan. Market participants will closely monitor whether the recent optimism continues into the new Samvat year.