The headline equity indices ended with modest gains today, marking a second consecutive day of gains as investor sentiment was boosted by the Reserve Bank of India’s latest policy announcement and strength in global equities. The Nifty settled above the 24,850 mark.
In the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 223.86 points or 0.28% to 81,207.17. The Nifty 50 index gained 57.95 points or 0.23% to 24,894.25. In two consecutive trading sessions, the Sensex added 1.17% while the Nifty added 1.15%.
The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.78% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 1.09%. The market breadth was strong.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, dropped 2.21% to 10.06.
Among the sectoral indices, the Nifty Metal index (up 1.82%), the Nifty PSU Bank index (up 1.12%) and the Nifty Consumer Durables index (up 1.09%) outperformed the Nifty 50 index.
Meanwhile, the Nifty Healthcare index (down 0.22%), the Nifty realty index (down 0.12%) and the Nifty Auto index (down 0.06%) underperformed the Nifty 50 index.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper slipped 0.12% to 6.515 from the previous close of 6.523.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 88.7850 compared with its close of 88.7100 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 3 October 2025 settlement shed 0.01% to Rs 117,580.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.06% to 97.48.
The United States 10-year bond yield shed 0.02% to 4.087.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for December 2025 settlement gained 43 cents or 0.67% to $64.54 a barrel.
Global Markets:
European shares advanced, while most Asian stocks ended higher on Friday as investors adopted a risk-on approach, driven by rising expectations of near-term monetary easing from the Federal Reserve—despite the U.S. government entering its third day of shutdown.
Investors appeared largely unfazed by the shutdown—reportedly the 15th since 1981—even though it has halted scientific research and financial oversight and delayed key economic data. Market participants are waiting to gauge the duration of the closure before assessing its broader economic impact, with history showing that such shutdowns rarely trigger significant market moves.
In Japan, unemployment edged up to 2.6% in August from 2.3% in the prior month, government data showed.
Meanwhile, the S&P Global Japan Services PMI rose to 53.3 in September from 53.1 in August, supported by strong domestic demand despite weakening export orders.
Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 0.06%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 78 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.4%.
The U.S. shutdown also forced the Labour Department to suspend operations, delaying the release of the September nonfarm payrolls report. While this reduces the data available for the Fed’s October policy meeting, it also removes a near-term source of pressure on equities.