Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Friday following statements from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump about plans to finalize trade agreements between the two nations.
The Sensex was up 279.95 points, or 0.37%, at 76,418.92, while the Nifty gained 84 points, or 0.36%, to reach 23,115.40.
Nifty Bank rose 196.75 points, or 0.40%, to 49,556.60. The Nifty Midcap 100 stood at 51,014.20 after gaining 133 points, or 0.26%. Meanwhile, the Nifty Smallcap 100 dipped 20.25 points, or 0.13%, to 15,953.60.
Hrishikesh Yedve of Asit C. Mehta Investment Intermediates Ltd said that the Nifty 50 formed a red candle on the daily chart, indicating selling pressure at higher levels. He pointed out that the 21-day Simple Moving Average is positioned at 23,270, making the 23,270–23,300 range a key resistance zone, while 22,780 serves as a strong support level. He advised traders to adopt a buy-on-dips strategy as long as the index holds above 22,780.
Among the Sensex stocks, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, M&M, HCL Tech, Tata Motors, Bajaj Finserv, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, Infosys, and Bajaj Finance were top gainers, while Sun Pharma, UltraTech Cement, Asian Paints, HDFC Bank, and Kotak Mahindra Bank saw losses.
In the previous session, US markets closed higher, with the Dow Jones gaining 0.77% to 44,711.43. The S&P 500 rose 1.04% to 6,115.07, and the Nasdaq climbed 1.50% to 19,945.64.
Asian markets showed mixed trends, with Jakarta, China, Seoul, Bangkok, and Hong Kong trading higher, while Japan was in the red.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued their selling spree for the seventh consecutive day on February 13, offloading equities worth ₹2,789.91 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth ₹2,934.50 crore, providing market support.
Investors are expected to closely monitor global market trends, crude oil prices, and institutional flows to assess the market’s direction, said Aakash Shah of Choice Broking.
-IANS
