Sensex jumps 1,718.01 points, Nifty rises 2.01% in India
Key Facts
Indian stock indexes ended the November 6 session sharply higher, with the Sensex gaining 1,718.01 points, or 2.17%, to 81,028.02, while the Nifty added 493.75 points, or 2.01%, to 25,030.35, according to closing data reported by Moneycontrol. The indexes extended their gains to a seventh consecutive session, a run Reuters described as the longest for the Nifty in 14 months and for the Sensex in 26 months. The Indian market's performance contrasted with the sharp decline in technology stocks across global markets in the previous session. Signs of continued foreign buying and a shift in some investments away from artificial intelligence stocks helped support the market, according to Reuters. But the rally did not extend across the entire Indian market, as small- and mid-cap stocks fell despite gains in the main indexes.
Friday's gains reflected a positive trend spanning the listed sessions since the end of October. EL7 closing data show the Sensex rose in each of the six listed sessions between October 30 and November 6, from 74,459.53 to 81,028.02. The Nifty followed the same path, rising from 23,053.1 on October 30 to 25,030.35 on November 6. In the previous session, Thursday, November 5, the Nifty rose 2.4% and the Sensex 2.6%, after Brent crude fell below $100 a barrel, according to Reuters. Foreign institutional investors bought about 150 billion rupees, or $1.6 billion, worth of Indian shares on Thursday. That was their largest net buying in a single day in nearly six years, according to the same report.
The gains came as global technology markets were under pressure from a broad selloff. The Nasdaq fell 5.5% in the previous session, while the Dow Jones dropped 3.4% and the S&P 500 fell 4.4%. Reuters linked the declines to weak results from Qualcomm and concerns about a slowdown in spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure. Major Asian markets also fell on Friday morning; South Korea's Kospi was down 8% and Japan's Nikkei 5% at the time of the report. By contrast, 10 of India's 16 major sectors posted gains on November 6. Still, the small- and mid-cap indexes fell 1.4% and 0.8%, respectively, underscoring the gap between the performance of blue-chip stocks and the breadth of the rally.
While the leading indexes advanced, India's technology sector also recovered during the session. The Nifty IT index rose 1.3% in Friday trading, taking its gains over two sessions to nearly 4%, according to Reuters. This came amid a reallocation of investments away from some artificial intelligence bets. Radhika Rao, senior economist at DBS Bank, said regional markets less exposed to that trade "appear to be benefiting in the initial phase of the reallocation of investments." Earlier pressure on the Indian market had included higher energy prices, the artificial intelligence trade, a weak currency and foreign outflows. Shahzad Madoow, chief executive of TCG Asset Management, said these factors "were the main pressures on the Indian market" until recently, and that the pressures had begun to ease.
Despite the strong rebound in recent sessions, Indian stocks remained weaker year to date than broader regional and global indexes. As of November 6, the Nifty was down 5.7% and the Sensex 6.2% since the start of 2026. By contrast, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index was up 10%, and the MSCI Asia ex-Japan Index had risen 11.5%, according to data cited by Reuters. The comparison puts the recent winning streak in the context of recouping some lost ground, without erasing the gap recorded since the start of the year. Krishna Bimfaro of State Street Investment Management said India "could become more attractive to foreign investors" if global conditions remained supportive. The assessment ties continued interest in the market to the condition that the external environment remains favorable, according to the statement reported by Reuters.