Stock market today: Indian equity markets opened higher on Friday, with the Sensex gaining over 200 points and the Nifty crossing 23,300, as softer crude oil prices and gains across Asian markets offered support. The Sensex opened at 74,575.24 and was trading at 74,485.71, up 171.12 points or 0.23%, against Thursday’s close of 74,314.59. The Nifty opened at 23,334.70 and was trading at 23,327.40, up 56.80 points or 0.24%, against its previous close of 23,270.60.

The positive start came as Brent crude remained around $103-$104 a barrel, helping ease some inflation concerns. Asian markets also traded higher, while US stocks had gained in the previous session.

Stock Market Today: Realty leads while IT stocks drag

Sectorally, Nifty Realty was the biggest gainer, rising 1.24%, while Nifty IT was the biggest drag, falling 1.40%. Nifty Midsmall IT & Telecom also declined 0.39%. All broad-market indices were trading in the green.

On the BSE, Eternal, LT, IndiGo, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, Adani Ports, Axis Bank, Power Grid, HDFC Bank, SBI, BEL, Reliance, ICICI Bank and M&M were among the major gainers. Infosys, Tata Steel, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Trent and Titan were among the losers.

Stock Market Today: Eternal, IndiGo among early NSE gainers

On the NSE, Eternal, IndiGo, Bajaj Finance, Shriram Finance, Eicher Motors, M&M, Cipla, LT, Maruti, Asian Paints, Bharti Airtel, Grasim, BEL, Power Grid, HDFC Bank and Titan were among the top gainers. TMPV, TCS, ITC, Tata Steel, Infosys, SBI and NTPC were among the major laggards in early trade.

Brent crude was trading around $103 a barrel, while US crude was around $101.15. Gold also edged higher, supported by softer oil prices and a subdued US dollar, with the metal trading around $4,358.68 at 9:21 am.

Stock Market Today: Analysts flag global rate moves and key levels

Market analyst Vipin Dixena said Indian markets were responding to major global macroeconomic developments. He noted that after the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 basis points earlier this week, the Bank of Japan also raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 1.25%, its highest level in 31 years. “For India, the positive side is that Brent crude has cooled towards USD 104, US 10-year yields have eased below 5 per cent and global equities recovered overnight,” Dixena said.

He identified 23,300-23,400 as the immediate resistance zone for the Nifty. A sustained move above it could take the index towards 23,500-23,600, while 23,100-23,000 remained the key support zone.

Stock Market Today: IPO activity shifts focus to primary market

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, said strong activity in India’s primary market had created opportunities in the secondary market. He said investors were focusing on IPOs and listing gains, weakening interest in the secondary market and depressing valuations of some large-cap stocks.

“For long-term investors, this is an opportunity. Leading banks, capital goods majors, select automobiles and pharmaceutical stocks provide buying opportunities,” Vijayakumar said.

(with inputs from ANI)

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