Indian equity benchmarks surged on Friday, extending their winning run to a seventh straight session and closing at their highest levels in more than eight months, as festive buying on Dhanteras and strong foreign inflows helped domestic markets defy a sharp global sell-off.

The BSE Sensex jumped 1,718.01 points, or 2.17 per cent, to settle at 81,028.02 — the day's high. The NSE Nifty 50 gained 493.75 points, or 2.01 per cent, to close at 25,030.35, its first close above the 25,000 mark since February 27, 2026.

A remarkable week for Indian shares

The rally capped a strong week for Indian equities. The Sensex gained 6,816 points over the week and the Nifty 1,885 points, with both benchmarks rising around 8 per cent. The Nifty crossed 24,900 for the first time since February 27, and both indices closed at their intraday highs on Friday after opening lower and slipping to a low of 24,388.05 in early trade.

India's gains stood in sharp contrast to the mood elsewhere. Wall Street's Nasdaq Composite fell 5.52 per cent on Thursday — its steepest single-day decline in 19 months — as the Dow dropped 3.44 per cent and the S&P 500 fell 4.36 per cent, wiping out the post-midterm election rally. Asian markets opened Friday sharply lower, with Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's Kospi falling steeply as investors questioned whether the enormous sums being committed to artificial intelligence will generate returns quickly enough.

What drove the Indian rally

Foreign investors have been a key support. Foreign portfolio investors were reported to have invested about ₹55,000 crore in Indian equities over 14 trading sessions, a marked change after months of selling. Softer oil prices also helped: Brent crude slipped below $100 a barrel, easing pressure on a large oil-importing economy. The rupee extended its winning streak to a sixth session, closing at a six-month high of 93.91 per dollar, about 56 paise stronger than its previous close of 94.47.

Among individual stocks, Mahindra & Mahindra and ICICI Bank were among the top gainers, rising around 5 per cent, while HDFC Life gained about 4 per cent. Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles was among the losers, falling about 1 per cent. The broader market was weaker than the headline indices suggested: the Nifty Midcap 100 ended almost flat at 60,606.65, and of the 2,872 stocks traded, 1,769 declined against 1,037 advances.

What comes next

The exchanges will remain open for a special Muhurat trading session on Sunday, November 8, to mark Diwali Laxmi Pujan. Investors will also watch corporate results due on Saturday, including Tata Steel and Divi's Laboratories. For now, the festival week has given Indian markets their strongest run in months — even as the global technology sell-off that rattled other markets barely dented Dalal Street.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice.