Sensex and Nifty recover in early trade with a rally in blue-chip bank stocks

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Benchmark equity indices, Sensex and Nifty, rebounded in early trade on Friday, recovering from the sharp decline witnessed in the previous session. The bounce back was primarily driven by value buying at lower levels and a rally in blue-chip bank stocks. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) played a key role in the recovery, along with firm trends observed in US markets, which further supported the positive movement in Indian equities.

In early trade, the BSE benchmark Sensex surged by 506.58 points, reaching 77,662.37, while the NSE Nifty gained 162.9 points to rise to 23,512.80. Among the 30 constituents of the Sensex, several blue-chip bank stocks were the top gainers. State Bank of India (SBI), ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Tata Motors, Power Grid, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, and Tech Mahindra were among the stocks witnessing significant gains.

In contrast, some stocks from the Adani group and other companies were under pressure. Adani Ports, Axis Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Titan, and Sun Pharma were among the biggest laggards. Specifically, eight of the ten listed Adani group companies continued to trade lower in morning trade, extending their losses from the previous day. This drop came after the US authorities filed charges against billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani for alleged bribery and fraud, adding pressure on the stocks.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) had offloaded equities worth Rs 5,320.68 crore on Thursday, while DIIs had countered this by buying shares worth Rs 4,200.16 crore, as per data from the exchanges.

In the broader Asian market, there were mixed trends. While Seoul and Tokyo were trading in the positive territory, Shanghai and Hong Kong were quoting lower. The US markets had ended on a positive note the previous day, contributing to a better sentiment in global equities.

On the commodities front, global oil benchmark Brent crude was up by 0.26% to USD 74.42 per barrel, reflecting the recovery in global markets.

On Thursday, the equity markets had faced a setback, with the Sensex plunging 422.59 points or 0.54% to settle at 77,155.79, while the Nifty had slumped 168.60 points or 0.72% to 23,349.90. However, Friday's early trade showed a recovery, reflecting optimism and investor confidence in the domestic markets, backed by firm trends across global indices.

(With inputs from PTI)