Oil & Natural Gas Corpn Ltd emerged as the top performer with shares closing at ₹278.40, marking a 1.37% gain and recording the highest trading volume of 169.45 lakh shares. Hindalco Industries Ltd followed closely with shares at ₹930.50, posting a 2.74% increase on 38.10 lakh shares traded. NTPC Ltd secured the third position with shares at ₹371.80, gaining 2.37% on 77.74 lakh shares traded. Larsen & Toubro Ltd also made it to the top performers, with shares at ₹4,365.00, gaining 1.97% on 14.31 lakh shares traded. Bajaj Finance Ltd rounded out the top five gainers with shares at ₹1,035.00, gaining 1.76% on 47.18 lakh shares traded, while Tata Steel Ltd also featured among the top gainers with shares at ₹208.91, gaining 1.70% on 181.88 lakh shares traded.
Infosys Ltd led the losers' list with shares falling 0.95% to close at ₹1,357.50, recording the highest trading volume of 90.03 lakh shares. Tech Mahindra Ltd followed with shares declining 1.35% to ₹1,459.30, recording the highest trading volume of 8.91 lakh shares. Kwality Walls India Ltd faced significant pressure, with shares declining 0.80% to ₹28.36, recording the highest trading volume of 78.90 lakh shares. Bharti Airtel Ltd also faced pressure, with shares declining 0.70% to ₹1,974.70, recording the highest trading volume of 41.24 lakh shares. HCL Technologies Ltd also featured among the top losers, with shares declining 0.58% to ₹1,442.00, recording the highest trading volume of 12.10 lakh shares. Wipro Ltd also faced pressure, with shares declining 0.53% to ₹210.10, recording the highest trading volume of 110.08 lakh shares.
The Sensex closed at 82,814.71, gaining 316.57 points or 0.38% after trading in a range of 82,206.21 to 83,132.08. The index showed strong breadth with 22 stocks advancing against 9 declining. The Nifty 50 ended at 25,571.25, up by 116.90 points or 0.46% after trading in a range of 25,379.75 to 25,663.55, with 36 stocks advancing against 15 declining. The Nifty Bank index showed strong performance, opening at 60,627.85 and gaining 493.75 points or 0.81%, with the index trading at 61,233.30. The Nifty Midcap 100 jumped 286 points to close at 59,513, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 closed 0.11% lower despite the broader market rally.
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation closed in the green with a 3.65% gain as rising Iran-US tensions sent oil prices soaring, with Brent crude futures surging as much as 5.92% to $71.76 per barrel - the highest level since June 2025. The oil sector benefited significantly from geopolitical uncertainties, with Oil India also gaining 5.19% and UPL rising 1.65%. This contrasted sharply with the broader market decline, as investors sought safe-haven assets amid escalating tensions. The United States issued new threats against Iran with President Donald Trump warning Iran on Thursday that it must make a deal over its nuclear programme or "really bad things" would happen, setting Tehran a deadline of 10 to 15 days to cooperate. The US has reportedly deployed its largest military buildup in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq invasion, raising the prospect of a broader and more sustained operation than last June's overnight strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. In response, Iran reportedly said it would retaliate against US bases in the region if attacked, which led to a strong rally in global crude oil prices. Growing US military deployments have heightened fears of disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint handling roughly one-third of global seaborne oil trade, which is particularly negative for oil importing countries like India which imports 80-90% of its oil.
Indian equity markets bounced back on Friday from the lower levels made in Thursday's session, with the recovery driven by positive economic data and the Supreme Court's landmark ruling on Trump tariffs. According to Upstox, after making a slightly negative start, indices turned positive and remained higher throughout the session as traders took support after a private survey showed that India's private sector accelerated in February led by robust demand for goods even as services growth was broadly steady. The Supreme Court announced its much-awaited decision on February 20, striking down aggressive Trump tariffs with a 6-3 majority, which signalled positive sentiment and is clearly a major setback for Trump's agenda. However, disappointed by the court verdict, Trump has increased global tariff rates to 15% from 10% for 150 days, adding to market uncertainty. The market recovery came despite lingering concerns over rising geopolitical tensions and uncertainty around the US Federal Reserve's interest-rate outlook. The India VIX (volatility index) soared 8% for the week to 14.36, signalling concerns for bulls and rising uncertainty, with experts noting that comfort for bulls will only be possible if the VIX drops decisively below 12 level.
