Indian equity markets staged a sharp rebound on Friday, May 23, bouncing back from Thursday’s steep sell-off, as gains in technology and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sectors led to a broad-based rally. The strong recovery was powered by upbeat corporate earnings sentiment and a softening in US Treasury yields, which improved risk appetite across global equities.

The benchmark Sensex surged 769 points, or 0.95 per cent, to close at 81,721, while the Nifty 50 climbed 243 points, or 1 per cent, to settle at 24,853, reclaiming the 24,800 mark. Despite Friday’s sharp gains, both indices ended the week lower, logging weekly losses of more than 0.65 per cent.

The market’s recent volatility has been driven by global uncertainties, including developments in US-India trade relations, concerns over the US fiscal outlook, and currency market fluctuations. These factors have kept investors on edge, leading to choppy trading sessions throughout the week.

However, Friday’s rebound was aided by short-covering and value-buying, with investors betting on long-term tailwinds for the Indian economy. Analysts noted that expectations of stable earnings growth, the possibility of rate cuts, and a normal monsoon are keeping sentiment buoyant despite short-term global headwinds.

With positive domestic fundamentals and improving macro cues, market participants are hopeful for a more sustained uptrend, although global triggers may continue to influence direction in the near term.

Indian stock market: 10 key highlights from the day

1) Top gainers in the Nifty 50 index today

Shares of Eternal (up 3.6 per cent), HDFC Life (up 3.28 per cent), Jio Financial (up 2.5 per cent), PowerGrid (up 2.46 per cent), and ITC (up 2.32 per cent) ended as the top gainers.

2) Top losers in the Nifty pack

Sun Pharma, Grasim, Bharti Airtel, and Bharat Electronics were the only losers in the index.

3) Broader markets today

Broader indices also participated in the rally. The Nifty Midcap 100 advanced 0.67 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 outperformed, rising 0.80 per cent.

4) Sectoral indices today

On the sectoral front, the Nifty FMCG and Nifty Private Bank indices emerged as standout performers in Friday’s session, posting gains of 1.63 per cent and 1.08 per cent, respectively. The rally in these sectors contributed significantly to the overall market rebound.

Other key indices also closed in positive territory, with IT, Financial Services, Metal, PSU Bank, Oil & Gas, and Realty all ending higher, notching up gains of up to 0.95 per cent.

On the flip side, the Nifty Pharma and Nifty Healthcare indices were the only two sectoral laggards. Nifty Pharma slipped by 0.41 per cent, while Nifty Healthcare edged lower by a marginal 0.01 per cent, capping an otherwise broad-based recovery across the market.

5) Most active stocks in terms of volume

Reliance Power (42.91 crore share), Tata Teleservices (11.91 crore shares), and Eternal (4.21 crore shares) were the most active stocks in terms of volume on the NSE.

6) Two stocks jump 15% on NSE

Eternal and Reliance Power were the two stocks that jumped over 15 per cent on the NSE.

7) Over 90 stocks hit upper circuits; 48 hit lower circuits

Some 93 stocks, including Honasa Consumer, Apollo Pipes, Skygold, and Emcure Pharma, hit their upper circuits in intraday trade on the NSE.

On the other hand, 48 stocks, including Orient Tech, Raymond, 63 Moons Tech, and Focus Lighting, hit their lower circuits during the session.

8) Advance-decline ratio

As many as 1,731 stocks advanced, while 1,132 declined and 84 remained unchanged on the NSE.

9) 50 stocks hit their 52-week highs while 17 hit 52-week lows

HDFC Asset Management Company, Max Financial, APL Apollo Tubes, EID Parry, MRF, Solar Industries and Dalmia Bharat were among the 50 stocks that hit their 52-week highs in intraday trade on the NSE.

On the flip side, Aditya Birla Fashion, Protean EGov Tech, and Chembond Chemicals, were among the 17 stocks that hit their 52-week lows during the session.

10) Technical View

“The index has moved higher after finding support at the 21-day EMA. Broadly speaking, the Nifty appears to be consolidating within the range of 24,700–25,000. The short-term trend remains positive, with momentum likely to strengthen above 25,000. A decisive breakout above this level could give the bulls an upper hand and potentially trigger a rally towards 25,250–25,350. On the downside, the index has support at 24,700; a break below this level could attract bearish bets,” Rupak De, senior technical analyst, LKP Securities.

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