The headline equity benchmarks traded with decent gains in morning trade. The Nifty traded above the 25,100 level. Realty shares extended gains for the four trading session. Trading activity may be volatile today as markets brace for the weekly expiry of Nifty50 futures and options contracts.
At 10:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 322.57 points or 0.40% to 82,174.49. The Nifty 50 index rose 80.70 points or 0.32% to 25,131.45.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.32% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.53%.
The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,374 shares rose and 1,246 shares fell. A total of 210 shares were unchanged.
Economy:
India’s eight core industries grew by 2% in July 2025 compared to the same month last year, according to data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Wednesday. The growth was driven by higher production in steel, cement, fertilisers, and electricity.
These eight sectors—coal, crude oil, natural gas, petroleum refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement, and electricity—account for 40.27% of the weight in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), making them key indicators of overall industrial performance.
Steel, which holds the highest weight (17.92%) in the index, surged 12.8% in July, buoyed by strong demand from government infrastructure projects. Cement output rose 11.7%, reflecting robust construction and infrastructure activity. Fertiliser production increased 2%, supported by healthy kharif sowing and good monsoon rains. Electricity generation edged up by 0.5%.
However, several sectors saw declines. Coal production dropped 12.3% due to heavy monsoon rains. Crude oil and natural gas output fell by 1.3% and 3.2% respectively, while refinery production dipped 1%.
Cumulatively, core sector growth for April–July FY26 stood at 1.6% year-on-year. Steel and cement led the gains with growth of 8.5% and 8.9%, respectively.
The revised core sector growth for June 2025 stood at 2.2%, pointing to a steady industrial trend in the early months of the fiscal year.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Realty index rose 0.94% to 922.45. The index added 4.90% in the four trading session.
Anant Raj (up 3.39%), Prestige Estates Projects (up 1.86%), Godrej Properties (up 1.31%), Sobha (up 1.17%) and Lodha Developers (up 1.04%), Oberoi Realty (up 0.85%), DLF (up 0.84%), Brigade Enterprises (up 0.24%), Phoenix Mills (up 0.21%) added.
Stocks in Spotlight:
RailTel Corporation of India advanced 2.17% after the company bagged two orders worth Rs 50.41 crore from the Kerala State Information Technology Mission (KSITM) and the Higher Education Department, Government of Odisha.
Innova Captab rose 0.44%. The company said that its Cephalosporin plant in Baddi, Himachal Pradesh has successfully cleared the United Kingdom Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (UK-MHRA) inspection.