Indian equity benchmarks were sitting comfortably in positive territory at midday on Friday, with BSE Sensex trading at 75,785.44, up 602 points or 0.80% and Nifty 50 gaining 176.15 points or 0.74% to trade at 23,830.85 at 12:53 pm. According to reports from The Financial Express, domestic institutional buying and optimism over a potential US-Iran diplomatic breakthrough kept the bulls in charge. The session was not driven solely by index strength, with earnings expectations, stake sale activity, licensing updates and deal-related developments creating sharper moves beneath the surface. Banking and financials were the standout sector drivers, with Nifty Bank and Nifty Private Bank among the top performers, buoyed by strong positioning in ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank.
Eicher Motors share price traded over 2% higher by midday ahead of the company's March quarter results announcement, as reported by The Financial Express. The positive momentum was supported by strong April sales data, with Royal Enfield reporting total sales growth of 31% year-on-year at 1,13,164 units compared with 86,559 units a year earlier. Growth was led primarily by motorcycles below 350cc, which remained the volume backbone of the business, though international sales declined 14% due to supply-side disruptions. Royal Enfield continues to dominate the mid-size motorcycle category with market share above 88%, giving Eicher a strong position as domestic demand remains healthy.
Central Bank of India share price declined more than 6% by midday after the government opened its 4% stake sale for institutional investors through an Offer For Sale, according to The Financial Express. The government also included a greenshoe option to sell another 4% stake, taking the total possible dilution to 8%. If fully exercised, government ownership in the bank would reduce from 89.27% to 81.27%. The transaction is expected to raise as much as ₹2,456 crore, with retail participation in the OFS scheduled for May 25.
FMCG put in a strong showing, with HUL surging nearly 1.86% and Asian Paints gaining 1.79%, reflecting defensive buying and sector rotation into consumer names, as reported by The Financial Express. Nifty FMCG, which had been an underperformer for much of the year, saw some recovery during the session. The defensive buying pattern emerged as investors rotated away from defensive consumer names towards banks and consumption discretionary plays, with ITC continuing to face selling pressure despite being a traditional defensive play.
Nifty Bank and Nifty Private Bank were among the top performers, buoyed by strong positioning in ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank, according to The Financial Express. Nifty Financial Services also held firm, with Shriram Finance adding to the sector's momentum. The banking sector's strong performance contributed significantly to the market's positive momentum, with Wipro leading index gainers at 2.09% and Axis Bank (+1.99%), ICICI Bank (+1.92%), Shriram Finance (+1.88%), HUL (+1.86%) and Asian Paints (+1.79%) among the top performers. Max Health Care was the biggest drag, down 4.32%, followed by ITC (-1.57%), ONGC (-1.39%), Sun Pharma (-1.27%), Power Grid (-1.07%) and Bajaj Auto (-0.88%).
Despite Friday's gains, both benchmarks were on course for a weekly decline — Brent down 4.6% and WTI down 7.6% as optimism over a peace deal restrained aggressive buying, as reported by The Financial Express. Crude oil, however, remained a risk on the table, with Brent crude rising $1.66 or 1.6% to $104.24 per barrel and WTI up 1.2% at $97.46 per barrel — well above the comfort zone for oil-importing economies like India. Asian markets broadly rose — Tokyo's Nikkei surged over 2% and Taipei gained 1.5% — tracking a positive but cautious close on Wall Street the previous night.
