Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Friday, April 17, with SENSEX climbing 177.52 points to 78,166.20 and NIFTY50 advancing 37.4 points to 24,234.15 in early trade. According to The Hindu, benchmark indices were trading in positive territory supported by optimism around easing geopolitical tensions and fresh foreign fund inflows. The positive momentum comes after Thursday's volatility when SENSEX declined 79.98 points to 78,031.26 and NIFTY50 fell 21.45 points to 24,208.90 after erasing early gains. A temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has added to markets' optimism, with expectations that this could pave the way for renewed U.S.-Iran negotiations, as reported by The Hindu. However, despite the positive undertone, the Nifty 50 continues to face stiff resistance in the 24,400–24,500 zone, having touched 24,400 in the previous session before retreating. Markets ended the last week on a positive note, with the Nifty gaining 0.7% on Friday and 1.3% for the week, as reported by The Economic Times. Indian equities are likely to consolidate at higher levels next week, after a sharp 10% rally over the past ten trading sessions, with the key monitorable remaining the second round of diplomatic peace talks between the US and Iran, with the ceasefire deadline of 22 April fast approaching.
From the 30-Sensex firms, ITC, Adani Ports, Maruti, Trent, Power Grid and Hindustan Unilever were among the major winners in early trade on Friday. In the broader markets, performance remained mixed with the Nifty MidCap index slipping 0.04% and the Nifty SmallCap index managing to trade 0.26% higher. Among individual stocks, Titan Company, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), and HDFC Bank emerged as the top losers in NIFTY50, dragging the index lower despite earlier gains. Market breadth remained positive with 1,678 stocks advancing out of 3,180 traded on the NSE, while 87 stocks hit 52-week highs including GMDC, Vedanta, MTAR Technologies, and Thangamayil Jewellery.
Despite the intraday weakness, the broader trend shows signs of recovery as the Nifty 50 had staged a strong rebound in the previous session, closing above the 24,200 mark and retracing nearly 50% of its decline from the peak of 26,341 to the recent low of 22,183, with this retracement level placed around 24,255. According to LiveMint, the performance across various timeframes presents a mixed picture, with the index increasing 1.57% in the past week and 3.16% over the last month, but facing challenges in the medium-term, having dropped 6.01% over the past three months and 5.61% over the last six months. Year-to-date, it has decreased by 7.64%, yet it has managed to achieve a 3.04% return over the previous year, showcasing some level of resilience. The index has retreated from the 25,000 mark since March 2, 2026, and is now facing crucial resistance at the 24,400-24,800 zone. Technically, the 24,400 level has emerged as a strong resistance zone due to multiple confluences, with derivatives data indicating heavy call writing at 24,400, highlighting strong institutional resistance. The overall structure remains positive, favoring a buy-on-dips approach, with the support base now shifting higher to around 24,000. Momentum indicators and oscillators continue to reflect strength, as the RSI sustains above the 55 level, with India VIX falling 5% to settle at 17.20 levels, as reported by The Economic Times.
Aakash Shah, Technical Analyst at Choice Broking, noted that the Nifty 50 index has clearly shifted into a weaker trend after facing rejection near 24,400, where it has started forming a pattern of lower highs and lower lows, along with instances of gap-down openings, indicating sustained selling pressure at higher levels. As reported by Mint, momentum indicators remain neutral, suggesting lack of strength for a decisive breakout. For the upside, a decisive breakout above 24,400–24,500 with strong closing and follow-through buying is essential to trigger short covering and fresh longs. If Nifty 50 sustains above 24,500, the next upside targets are seen at 24,800–25,000 levels, with immediate support at 24,000 and major support placed at 23,724. Sunny Agrawal, Head of Fundamental Research at SBI Securities, believes fundamentally, post 18 months of correction, the situation seems to be much better with relatively better global cues related to energy supply disruption. Rajesh Bhosale, Equity Technical and Derivative Analyst at Angel One, noted that bulls have made a strong comeback in recent weeks, with the Nifty 50 rallying over 2,000 points from recent lows in just 15 days and retracing nearly 50% of its earlier decline.
Foreign portfolio investors net bought shares worth ₹683 crore on Thursday, while DIIs were net sellers at ₹4,721 crore, as reported by The Economic Times. The Indian rupee rose on Friday following a Reuters report of a central bank step to curb state-run oil companies' dollar demand, adding to measures that have narrowed the currency's underperformance over the last fortnight. Market experts suggest that the current consolidation phase at higher levels is healthy after the sharp 10% rally, with the focus shifting to sustained institutional flows and global cues. The key monitorable remains the second round of diplomatic peace talks between the US and Iran, with the ceasefire deadline of 22 April fast approaching, which could provide further catalysts for market direction.
Shares of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) advanced 4% on April 15 as its board, on Monday, approved the issuance of bonus equity shares in the proportion of 1:1. As reported by Upstox, this means that the shareholders will get one fully paid-up equity share of ₹10 each for every one fully paid-up equity share of ₹10 each held by the members of the corporation as of the record date. This bonus issue represents a significant corporate action that has boosted investor sentiment in the insurance sector.
