Markets held firm in afternoon trade on Thursday, with the Sensex up 386 points at 77,309 and the Nifty 50 gaining 117 points to trade at 24,123.75 as of 12.58 pm, building on the morning’s gains driven primarily by a sharp rally in information technology stocks.
IT heavyweights dominated the Nifty leaderboard. Infosys surged 5.61 per cent to ₹1,040.60, with over 1.15 crore shares changing hands worth ₹1,19,495.67 lakhs. HCL Technologies rose 4.53 per cent to ₹1,081.10, TCS jumped 4.07 per cent to ₹2,063.20 on volumes of nearly 39 lakh shares valued at ₹79,578.60 lakhs, Tech Mahindra gained 3.08 per cent to ₹1,404.20, and Wipro climbed 2.80 per cent to ₹174.89 on heavy volumes of over 2.87 crore shares worth ₹49,839.42 lakhs. SBI Securities noted that “IT stocks are relatively outperforming today on the back of short covering, with TCS and Infosys being the top contributors in Nifty.”
On the losing side, Larsen & Toubro fell the most, declining 1.71 per cent to ₹4,022.70 from its previous close of ₹4,092.60. Bharti Airtel shed 0.86 per cent to ₹1,855.00, BEL dropped 0.80 per cent to ₹412.90, SBI Life slipped 0.79 per cent to ₹1,776.80, and Bajaj Auto declined 0.72 per cent to ₹9,771.50.
Breadth on BSE remained positive with 2,430 stocks advancing against 1,628 declining out of 4,278 traded. A total of 144 stocks hit 52-week highs while 59 touched 52-week lows. Stocks in upper circuit numbered 170 against 175 in lower circuit. Nifty’s Advance Decline Ratio stood at 34:16.
Crude oil continued to be a key macro support, with US Oil breaking below the $69–$71 consolidation range to trade under $68, while MCX Crude Oil fell below the ₹6,500 mark. Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, said prices are “continuing to trim war gains,” though RSI hovering in oversold territory “suggests potential for a near-term bounce.”
In commodities, COMEX Gold is attempting to hold above the $4,000 mark, while MCX Gold is trading near ₹1,44,000 with resistance at ₹1,45,000–₹1,45,500. COMEX Silver is holding above the $60 level, and MCX Silver is trading near ₹2,32,000 after sustaining above the ₹2,30,000 support. The USD/INR pair is trading in the ₹94.9–₹95.0 range, stabilising after retreating from highs near ₹95.3.
Technically, SBI Securities flagged that “the frontline indices started the day on a strong note but witnessed selling pressure at their weekly highs,” with Nifty trading in a range of 477 points across the past 12 sessions. The 23,950–23,970 zone is seen as crucial support, with resistance at 24,200–24,220. A move above 24,220 could extend the rally to 24,420, while a slip below 23,950 would expose the 23,800–23,820 band. On options, meaningful call writing is visible at the 24,100 and 24,200 strikes, while the 24,000 put holds substantial open interest. On Sensex, support is placed at 76,700 and resistance at 77,500.
Published on July 2, 2026
