Sensex and Nifty opened largely unchanged on Thursday, with benchmark indexes consolidating gains after a sharp rally fuelled by sustained foreign fund inflows, easing crude oil prices and a cooling global artificial intelligence (AI) trade.
GIFT Nifty futures stood at 25,270 as of 8 am, signalling a muted start for the Nifty 50, which closed at an over-eight-month high of 25,255.05 on Wednesday, according to figures cited in a Reuters report.
The 30-share BSE Sensex rallied 772.75 points, or 0.95 per cent, to settle at 81,879.40, a level not seen since February 26. During the day, it jumped 1,413.75 points, or 1.74 per cent, to 82,520.40, according to PTI news agency data.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth ₹12,563 crore ($1.34 billion) on Wednesday, according to provisional data, Reuters reported. Their net purchases have reached $6.43 billion so far in November, already marking their highest monthly buying since September 2024, per the report.
Strong foreign inflows have lifted the Nifty 50 and Sensex by 9.6 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively, so far this month.
{{/usCountry}}Strong foreign inflows have lifted the Nifty 50 and Sensex by 9.6 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively, so far this month.
{{/usCountry}}The rally signals a turnaround for Indian equities, which have underperformed their emerging-market peers over the past two years amid elevated crude oil prices and limited exposure to the global AI-driven market rally.
Brent crude futures declined more than 1% to $91.8 per barrel amid hopes of progress in peace talks over the conflicts in the Middle East and between Russia and Ukraine.
"Lower crude oil prices continue to provide a supportive backdrop, but the US 10-year Treasury yield hovering near 4.99 per cent, coupled with the market's extended rally, may restrict immediate upside," said Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, founder and CEO of HST Wealth.
Meanwhile, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.1 per cent, weighed down by losses in Hong Kong stocks.
Shares of Adani Green Energy, Coforge, Life Insurance Corporation of India and Meesho were expected to be in focus after index provider MSCI added them to the MSCI India index. PI Industries was removed from the index.