Sensex Opens 82 Points Up; Nifty Holds Below 25,500, Bajaj Finance Gains 2%

Indian equity benchmarks opened slightly higher on Friday, supported mainly by gains in fast‑moving consumer goods (FMCG) and financial shares, although overall sentiment remained cautious in the absence of fresh market‑moving catalysts. By 9:22 a.m., the S&P BSE Sensex had inched up 46.97 points to 83,286.44, and the NSE Nifty 50 had added 14.45 points to 25,419.75.

Range‑bound backdrop

Dr V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, noted that the Nifty is unlikely to break out of its current 25,200‑25,800 band in the near term because there are no clear triggers. Despite the narrow range, he said the market has shown “remarkable resilience,” helped by:

• Global support: Record‑high closes on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq lend a positive external backdrop.

• Domestic liquidity: Steady inflows from domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have turned them into persistent buyers.

Early movers

• Top gainers: Bajaj Finance (+2.04 %), Bajaj Finserv (+1.70 %), Bharat Electronics (+1.11 %), Hindustan Unilever (+0.66 %), HDFC Bank (+0.58 %).

• Top laggards: Trent (‑7.50 %), Tata Steel (‑1.12 %), Tech Mahindra (‑0.92 %), Maruti Suzuki (‑0.42 %), Asian Paints (‑0.25 %).

Broader-market picture

Opening moves across indices were mixed:

• Nifty Midcap 100: +0.08 %

• Nifty Smallcap: ‑0.04 %

• India VIX: +0.94 %, indicating a mild uptick in expected volatility.

Sector snapshot

Gainers:

• Nifty Realty +0.46 %

• Nifty FMCG +0.25 %

• Nifty Financial Services +0.24 %

• Nifty Media +0.17 %

• Nifty Pharma +0.12 %

• Nifty Healthcare +0.09 %

• Nifty Consumer Durables +0.08 %

• Nifty Oil & Gas +0.03 %

Losers:

• Nifty Metal ‑0.30 %

• Nifty IT ‑0.17 %

• Nifty Auto ‑0.15 %

• Nifty Private Bank ‑0.13 %

Earnings will matter

Vijayakumar cautioned that upside for the indices is capped by lukewarm earnings growth and only modest expectations for FY26. Investors should closely watch the first‑quarter (Q1 FY25) results season, which begins shortly, for signs of any change in the earnings trajectory.

Stock‑specific focus

He expects performance dispersion to be driven more by individual companies than by whole sectors:

• Autos: Headline numbers may remain subdued, yet companies such as TVS Motor, Eicher Motors, and Mahindra & Mahindra could beat industry averages.

• Financials: Names like Bajaj Finance and Shriram Finance may deliver above‑peer results.

Hence, near‑term market action is likely to be highly stock‑specific rather than broadly sector‑driven.