Stock markets rally in early trade driven by surge in Infosys shares

New Delhi: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rallied in early trade on Friday, driven by a sharp jump in Infosys after the company raised its revenue growth guidance for FY26.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 343.44 points to 83,726.15 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty went up by 77.65 points to 25,743.25.

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From the 30-Sensex firms, Infosys jumped nearly 5 percent after the Bengaluru-headquartered firm saw its revenue from operations grow by 8.9 percent to Rs 45,479 crore in the third quarter of the current fiscal, from Rs 41,764 crore in the year-ago period.

The company has raised its revenue growth guidance for FY26 to 3-3.5 percent in constant currency, from 2-3 percent earlier.

Tech Mahindra, Mahindra & Mahindra, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Larsen & Toubro and HCL Tech were also among the gainers.

However, Eternal, Bharti Airtel, Bharat Electronics and UltraTech Cement were among the laggards.

India and the US are "very near" to finalising the trade agreement, and it would be announced when both sides are ready, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Thursday.

The negotiating teams of both sides are discussing virtually all pending issues, he said.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 4,781.24 crore on Wednesday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth Rs 5,217.28 crore, according to exchange data.

Stock markets were closed on Thursday on account of the Maharashtra civic polls.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi index traded higher, while Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index quoted lower.

US markets ended higher on Thursday.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dipped 0.24 percent to USD 63.61 per barrel.

On Wednesday, the Sensex dropped 244.98 points or 0.29 percent to settle at 83,382.71. The Nifty declined 66.70 points or 0.26 percent to 25,665.60.

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