Sensex ends at 74,459.53 as GIFT Nifty signals a gap-up open
Indian equities closed a second straight session higher on Friday, with the Sensex adding 308.49 points, or 0.42%, to 74,459.53 and the Nifty 50 climbing 116.35 points, or 0.51%, to 23,053.10. GIFT Nifty was trading around the 23,291 level, up nearly 205 points, or 0.89%, from the Nifty futures' previous close, pointing to a gap-up open on Monday.
The week belonged to the bulls: the Sensex gained 1,335.7 points, or 1.82%, and the Nifty 453.1 points, or 2%. Ajit Mishra, SVP – Research at Religare Broking, credited encouraging corporate earnings and renewed buying in heavyweight stocks, with the Sensex surging more than 900 points on Thursday and the momentum carrying into Friday as the Nifty reclaimed 23,000.
Technically, Sachin Gupta, VP – Technical Research at Choice Equity Broking Private Limited, put immediate Sensex support at 73,800–74,000 and resistance at 74,700–75,000, calling the structure sideways to bullish. A decisive break above 75,000 could open further upside, he said, while a breach of support may invite profit booking. Hitesh Tailor, research analyst at Choice Broking, placed Nifty resistance at 23,200, with a break opening the way to 23,700–24,000, and support at 22,850 followed by 22,600–22,400.
Abroad, US futures recovered some ground after Friday's sell-off erased more than $1 trillion in market capitalisation, with Dow futures up over 165 points and Nasdaq futures nearly 200 points, though both indices ended October lower. South Korea's Kospi reversed an early 1.5% fall to trade above 5,700, Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 0.33% to 63,082.53 ahead of US midterm elections, and Taiwan's Taiex fell 0.50% to 44,962.45.
Ponmudi R, chief executive of Enrich Money, said Indian markets may extend their recovery on renewed diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the US–Iran conflict, with talks involving Iranian officials and Qatari mediators raising hopes of easing supply concerns and trimming the geopolitical risk premium in crude oil.
