The BSE Sensex climbed 330.82 points or 0.44% to 75,514.18 and the Nifty 50 rose 101.55 points or 0.43% to 23,756.25 in early trade on May 22, building on Thursday's flat close. According to HDFC Securities, the market opened higher as US-Iran talks show cautious progress, boosting sentiment amid global cues. A recovery in crude oil prices from recent lows, a steady Wall Street finish, and firm Asian cues provided additional tailwinds, though gains were capped by persistent weakness in IT and FMCG stocks. The positive opening follows Thursday's session where the Sensex slipped 135.03 points to 75,183.36 and Nifty 50 declined just 4.30 points to 23,654.70.
SBI Life Insurance Company Ltd emerged as the top performer with a 1.50% gain to ₹1,887.80, up from its previous close of ₹1,859.90. Eicher Motors Ltd followed with a 1.48% increase to ₹6,994.00 versus ₹6,892. ICICI Bank Ltd secured the third position with a 1.06% rise to ₹1,256.00 against ₹1,242.80. Larsen & Toubro rounded out the top four gainers with a 1.05% increase to ₹3,931.20 from ₹3,928.50. HDFC Bank Ltd completed the top five with a 1.02% increase to ₹766.90 against ₹759.15. Other notable performers included Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd (1.04% gain to ₹384.80), UltraTech Cement Ltd (0.91% rise to ₹11,578.00), and Bajaj Finserv Ltd (0.88% increase to ₹1,767.60).
Max Healthcare Institute Ltd topped the losers list with a significant 5.05% decline to ₹1,036.00 from its previous close of ₹1,091.10, recording the highest trading volume. ITC Ltd followed with a 0.96% drop to ₹305.10 against ₹308.05. Tech Mahindra Ltd experienced a 0.69% decline to ₹1,410.20 versus ₹1,420. Infosys Ltd recorded a 0.65% decrease to ₹1,173.50 against ₹1,181.20. Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd rounded out the top losers with a 0.58% drop to ₹297.80 from ₹299.55. Cipla Ltd also made the losers list with a 0.28% decline to ₹1,398.00 on 0.27 lakh shares traded.
On the sectoral front, Nifty Private Bank emerged as the top gainer, rising 0.82% to 26,202.30, followed by Nifty Bank up 0.74% to 53,836.75 and Nifty Financial Services advancing 0.74% to 25,423.80. However, Nifty IT fell 0.50% to 28,876.70, Nifty Media slipped 0.85% to 1,383.25, and Nifty Realty declined 0.92% to 768.00, emerging as the session's sectoral laggards. Among broader market indices, the Nifty Midcap 100 advanced 0.14% to 61,384.50, Nifty Midcap 150 gained 0.16% to 22,516.10, and Nifty Microcap 250 rose 0.28% to 23,306.05, reflecting healthy participation beyond large-caps. The Nifty Smallcap 100 slipped marginally by 0.02% to 17,978.70, and the Nifty Smallcap 50 edged down 0.10% to 8,849.45.
Asian markets presented a stronger note on Friday morning, with Japan's Nikkei 225 surging 2.29% to 63,094.61 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng gaining 0.43% to 25,496. US markets ended Thursday on a steady footing, with the Dow Jones gaining 0.55% to 50,285.66, Nasdaq adding 0.09% to 26,293.10, and S&P 500 edging up 0.17% to 7,445.72. Oil prices recovered on Friday after a sharp pullback, with Brent crude futures rising $2.38 or 2.3% to $104.96 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate climbing $1.73 or 1.8% to $98.08. The positive sentiment comes as US-Iran talks show cautious progress, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledging "some good signs" in talks while cautioning against excessive optimism. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has reportedly issued a directive barring uranium from being sent abroad, hardening key sticking points in the negotiations.
