India's equity markets extended their remarkable rally for the sixth consecutive session on Thursday, November 5, with the Sensex surging 1,590 points or 2% to 78,891.52 points and the Nifty rising 460 points or 1.9% to 24,424.70 points. According to The Financial Express, this represents a significant milestone as the Nifty crossed the 24,400 mark for the first time, demonstrating sustained investor confidence despite global market volatility. The recovery from earlier session lows continued the positive momentum that began on Wednesday when markets recovered from gap-down openings amid global AI-related concerns.
Despite the broader market rally, several major stocks experienced significant declines due to disappointing quarterly results. PI Industries plummeted over 18% to hit a six-year low of ₹1,791, reporting a 70% year-on-year decline in net profit to ₹122 crore for the September quarter. Cummins India dropped around 15% to ₹4,031.20 per share after its net profit fell 18.5% to ₹507 crore from ₹622 crore in the previous year, with EBITDA margin contracting sharply to 15.3% from 21.9%. Other notable declines included Aptus Value Housing Finance down 11% despite an 18% YoY increase in net profit to ₹267 crore, Kirloskar Oil Engines falling 9% with EBITDA margin contracting to 14.8% from 19.6%, and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise declining 4% despite strong revenue growth of 23% YoY to ₹7,615 crore.
Consumer and financial stocks continued to lead the gains in India's market recovery, with several stocks showing strong performance during the extended rally. According to NSE data, ITC was up over 3%, Max Healthcare up 2.7%, BEL up 2.2%, Adani Ports up 2.6%, and SBI up 1% were leading the pack of gainers during Wednesday's session. The Nifty FMCG index rose 1.05%, while the Nifty Financial Services index added 0.50%. The Nifty had previously risen 1.58% to 23,810.85 on Tuesday, marking a fourth straight gain and reaching a two-month high. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's pledge to consider investor concerns over taxes on stock gains provided significant support, with India's capital gains tax currently standing at 12.5% for long-term holdings and 20% for short-term ones.
Foreign investment sentiment remained positive with significant buying activity supporting Indian markets throughout the extended rally period. According to NSE data, FIIs bought around ₹6,836.81 crore worth of capital market assets in a single day on Tuesday's market, while domestic investors remained net sellers. This sustained foreign buying, combined with the lower-risk profile of Indian equities than the downtrend in major markets, was a key driver of the extended rally. On the oil front, Brent crude oil prices were trading around 1.6% lower at $106.4 per bbl on Wednesday morning, compared to $108.28 per bbl at the previous commodity market close, as reported by TradingView data. The easing pressure on oil came as investors focused on Qatar's efforts to bring the United States and Iran together for peace proposals.
